“Strong and thriving.” That was Interim Dean Steven Leach’s assessment of the Geisel School of Medicine during the annual State of the Medical School address on Wednesday, June 3, where he reflected on a year of transition and the deep connections he made with the Geisel community.
Leach discussed the school’s strategic priorities, institutional accomplishments, finances, and several leadership transitions ahead of the incoming dean Jennifer Hunt’s August 1 start.
He explained how the strategic priorities laid the groundwork for a successful transition: strengthening Geisel's research and discovery leadership across Dartmouth and Dartmouth Health, deepening ties between the dean's office and clinical departments, and driving momentum through investment and recruitment. Key initiatives included three deep-dive task forces on faculty appointments, clinical research barriers, and an overhaul of Geisel's communications infrastructure.
Geisel launched six new tenure track faculty searches and finalized 953 new faculty appointments; interim leaders were named in several areas, including faculty affairs and clinical research, and Roy Herbst was named the new director of the Dartmouth Cancer Center.
With a first-year class size of 96 students, Geisel had 403 medical students enrolled this year, as well as 214 students enrolled in our health sciences programs, including two new MS degree programs launched this year.
The school’s budget deficit came in smaller than expected—a positive result given the financial pressures across higher education. He also highlighted fundraising successes, including a $5M gift from Patty and Doug Sacks D’80 to support early career faculty, and the successful completion of a $50M fundraising goal for the Dartmouth Cancer Center.
Despite federal funding headwinds, Geisel held a $100M sponsored research portfolio. Highlights include a $12M implementation science grant, and a $13M NIDA grant for digital teen substance-use tools. Geisel accounts for 75% of Dartmouth's NIH funding and leads among Ivy Plus schools in rural health research.
Following Leach’s address, awards were presented to Geisel faculty and staff for their collective efforts in advancing Geisel’s mission.
2026 Research Excellence Awards; Outstanding Citizen Award
This year’s honorees are:
Anna Tosteson: Research Excellence Award for Senior Faculty in Foundational Sciences
Peter Wright: Research Excellence Award for Senior Faculty in Clinical Sciences
Miriam Lee: Research Excellence Award for Non-Faculty
Steve Fiering and Yina Huang: Outstanding Citizenship Award for Faculty awarded jointly
2026 Leading Forward Awards
Honoring the outstanding contributions of staff and faculty for their commitment to Geisel’s core values of community, integrity, inclusion, innovation, and excellence, this year’s honorees are:
Deanna Chyn: The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, associate program director and senior research programmer analyst
Ashleigh Erikson: The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, senior research programmer/analyst
Karen Thompson: Microbiology and Immunology, senior research administrator II
Jeremy Klockers: Medical and Health Sciences Libraries, information services manager
Robert Gerlach: Dartmouth Cancer Center, associate director for administrative and scientific affairs
Leach concluded with tributes to four medical school community members who passed away during the year and expressed confidence in the incoming leadership team under Jennifer Hunt.
The full list of award winners is available in the event program.
You can watch the video of the event here: