I am pleased to announce two new ad interim leaders in the Academic Enterprise.

 Deborah J. Jones, PhD, MSN, RN, has agreed to serve as Provost ad interim effective Sept. 22, 2022. Dr. Jones has provided outstanding leadership as Senior Vice President and Dean of our School of Nursing (SON), a role she will maintain as she accepts this new responsibility.

Dr. Jones joined UTMB in December 2017 from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Nursing, where she spent nine years as an educator and academic leader. Her leadership roles included Associate Dean for Professional Development and Faculty Affairs, Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs, and Department Chair. She has also engaged in research focused on improving outcomes in acute and critically ill patients through evidence-based oral health practices and interprofessional education.

Dr. Jones holds a PhD in Nursing with a concentration on Biobehavioral Clinical Research from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. She also earned a Master of Science in Nursing in the Nurse Executive track from Virginia Commonwealth University. Her Bachelor of Science in Nursing is from Radford University in Radford, Va.

Dr. Jones is holder of the Rebecca Sealy Distinguished Centennial Chair. She was recently inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and has been a Fellow of the Leadership for Academic Nursing Program in the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

Dr. Jones has a wide range of experience as a clinician, researcher, educator, and leader, and I appreciate her strong commitment to faculty and student success. I am confident she will be an exceptional leader for our Academic Enterprise. Please help me welcome her as Provost ad interim.

 Jeffrey L. Susman, MD, has accepted the role of Dean ad interim, John Sealy School of Medicine (JSSOM) effective Sept. 22, 2022. Dr. Susman joined UTMB as Senior Associate Dean for Educational Improvement in JSSOM in February 2022 and has an impressive history of leadership in academic medicine.

Dr. Susman began his medical career as a rural clinician in Wahoo, Nebraska. He then joined the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), where he became Vice Chair of Family Medicine, Associate Dean for Primary Care and Faculty Development, and led UNMC’s primary care clinician group. In 2000, he became Chair of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Cincinnati. He was a board member of the health system, chair of the physicians’ organization, and secretary of the physician-hospital organization. He was an ACE Fellow at the University of Colorado.

Dr. Susman became Dean at the Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) College of Medicine in 2010. During his tenure, he oversaw the development of multiple new research and educational facilities while more than doubling NEOMED’s NIH funding. He established a campus in Cleveland in collaboration with Cleveland State University devoted to the recruitment and success of underrepresented minorities. As Chair of the Council of Deans, he oversaw a new health and wellness center, development of a medical practice, the simulation center, and interactions across the state. He also chaired the Ohio Council of Medical Deans.

Dr. Susman’s wealth of experience and knowledge will serve him well as Dean ad interim, and I know the JSSOM will be in excellent hands with his leadership. Please join me in welcoming him to this new role.

Sincerely yours,

Charles P. Mouton, MD, MS, MBA
President ad interim
Executive Provost and Executive Dean
Thomas N. and Gleaves T. James Distinguished Chair