The Medical Education Senior Leaders (MESL) is an AAMC-convened community whose focus is the continuing improvement of education in the nation's medical schools. All MESL members are encouraged to join the group's standing committees, task forces, and rapid action teams. Learn more about these committees and their leadership.
To reach a member of the MESL team, please contact mesl@aamc.org.
2025 Steering Committee
The MESL Steering Committee is elected from the membership of MESL and manages the affairs of the community. Terms of service begin at the MESL Annual Meeting each January. The Steering Committee consists of three officers serving two-year terms and three members-at-large serving three-year terms.
Chair
Loretta Jackson-Williams, MD, PhD, FACEP
Vice Dean for Medical Education
University of Mississippi School of Medicine
Chair-Elect
Abbas A. Hyderi, MD, MPH
Vice Dean for Education
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Past Chair
Richard Baker, MD
Senior Vice Dean, Vice Dean of Medical Education
Wayne State University
Alumni Advisor
Lyuba Konopasek, MD
Senior Vice President, Intealth
Executive Director, FAIMER
Canadian Liaison
Patricia Houston, MD, MEd, FRCPC
Vice Dean Medical Education, Temerty Faculty of Medicine
Professor, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
Members-At-Large
April O. Buchanan, MD, FAAP
Associate Dean for Medical Education
University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville
Priya Sinha Garg, MD
Associate Dean, Office of Medical Education
Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Jeremy J. Laukka, PhD
Senior Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education
University of Toledo School of Medicine
2024-2026 Nominations Committee
The collective mission of the Nominations Committee is to ensure continued excellence and leadership within MESL by identifying and nominating highly qualified candidates for various MESL leadership positions. The chair of MESL appoints a Nominations Committee chair who leads a group of at least five voting members of MESL.
Chair
Richard Baker, MD
Senior Vice Dean, Vice Dean of Medical Education
Wayne State University
Committee Members
Lisa Auerbach, MD, MS-HPEd
Associate Dean for Clinical Medical Education
CUNY School of Medicine
Bernard S. Chang, MD, MMS
Dean for Medical Education
Harvard Medical School
Arthur G. Gomez, MD, FACP
Senior Associate Dean of Medical Education
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science
Karen Hauer, MD, PhD
Vice Dean for Education
University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
Melissa R. Held, MD
Senior Associate Dean for Medical Student Education
University of Connecticut School of Medicine
Nadia Ismail, MD, MPH, MEd
Vice Dean, School of Medicine
Baylor College of Medicine
Meg G. Keeley, MD
Senior Associate Dean for Education
University of Virginia School of Medicine
Rebecca L. Toonkel, MD
Associate Dean for Curriculum and Medical Education
FIU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine
Mentoring Committee
Co-Chairs
Stephen Scott, MD, MPH
Senior Associate Dean for Education
Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine
Sonia Nagy Chimienti, MD, FIDSA
Dean of Educational Affairs
Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine
Program Planning Committee
Chair
Abbas A. Hyderi, MD, MPH
Vice Dean for Education
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
Committee Members
Giulia A. Bonaminio, PhD
Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education
University of Kansas School of Medicine
Judith Brenner, MD
Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education
NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine
Mary A. Furlong, MD
Senior Associate Dean of Curriculum & Director of the Office of Medical Education
Professor and Director of Medical Education
Department of Pathology
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Ruth Stewart, MD
Associate Dean of Medical Education
Office of Medical Education
Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine
David C. Thomas, MD, MHPE
Dean for Medical Education
Chair, Leni and Peter May Department of Medical Education
Professor of Medicine, Medical Education and Rehabilitation and Human Performance
System Vice Chair for Education, Department of Medicine
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai