Message from the Provost

Message from the Provost
May 8, 2020


May 8, 2020

Dear Loyola Community,

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Sam J. Marzo, MD, as dean of the Stritch School of Medicine (SSOM), effective immediately.

Dr. Marzo, a proud Stritch alum and professor, has served as interim dean of the SSOM since December 2018. Besides holding this role, he has chaired the Department of otolaryngology – head and neck surgery, Loyola University Health System (LUHS). During this time, he has held a variety of LUHS staff appointments. He is also active in multiple Loyola committees such as the Loyola Clinical Leadership Council, the Perioperative Executive Committee, and the Medical Executive Committee. In addition, he has held memberships and appointments in professional societies and national committees. Dr. Marzo attended the AAMC COD Leadership Program for New Deans and participated in the Loyola Professional Development Program in affiliation with the School of Public Health of Harvard University.

After earning his medical degree at Stritch in 1991, Dr. Marzo completed his internship and residency in otolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery at Loyola University Chicago Hospital. He then pursued a fellowship in neurotology at the Otology Group at Baptist Hospital (Nashville, TN). There, he also was a clinical assistant professor at Vanderbilt University.

Dr. Marzo accepted an otolaryngology position in private practice in Hinsdale, Illinois in 1997, while also working part-time at Hines Veterans Hospital.

He returned to Loyola full-time in 1999 and has been instrumental in forging strong clinical relationships. Moreover, he has served as an ambassador for Stritch, the Health Sciences Campus, Loyola, and the broader community. His tenure at the health system and the University enables him to be a valuable and trusted partner. He has been involved in the selection of several senior LUHS leaders and serves on its Board of Trustees. Dr. Marzo is also a member of the Integrated Clinical Leadership Team (ICLT), the executive clinical leadership group of LUHS. This group has the decision-making authority and the accountability to execute the implementation of Trinity Health initiatives to provide patient-centered care.

He practices and promotes cura personalis. Thus, he encourages students to take care of themselves, each other, and their friends and families. Dr. Marzo’s commitment to strengthening the support services of the Stritch community for students, faculty, and staff reflects his keen understanding of their needs and challenges.

During his conversations with the Search Committee, Dr. Marzo discussed charting a long-term growth path of Stritch. According to his vision, Stritch would pursue new funding through increased philanthropic initiatives and diversifying revenue streams. Among the qualities noted by the Search Committee were the following: Dr. Marzo’s servant leadership style, his intricate knowledge of and strong relationships with LUHS executives and staff, his disarming demeanor, and his business acumen.

President Jo Ann Rooney and I are grateful to the members of the Search Committee for leading this national search. They labored diligently during the last five months to help us arrive at this appointment. Working collaboratively and under the leadership of Mark Cichon, professor and chair, Department of Emergency Medicine and division director, Emergency Medical Services, they created and executed the search and interview processes. The Search Committee solicited community input on the candidate profile, identified and interviewed semi-finalist candidates, and identified several impressive finalists.

Thank you to the Search Committee:

  • Elaine Adams, MD, chief of staff, Hines VA
  • Francis Alonzo, PhD, assistant professor, microbiology and immunology, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Crystal Cash, MD, associate dean, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Quenfeng Dong, PhD, director, Center for Biomedical Informatics; associate professor, Department of Medicine, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Lorna Finnegan, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean and professor, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing
  • Colleen Fitzgerald, MD, MS, associate professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; medical director, Clinical Research Office
  • Richard Freeman, MD, MBA, FACS, regional chief clinical officer, Loyola Medicine
  • Sahand Ghodrati, Stritch Class of 2020; class president
  • Tad Gomez, RPh, MS, FASHP, president, Loyola University Medical Center
  • Pegge Halandras, MD, associate professor, Department of Surgery; director of vascular surgery/endovascular therapy, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Wendy Kartje, MD, PhD, professor, Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Neuroscience; chief, neuroscience research, Hines VA Hospital
  • Nancy Zeleznik-Le, PhD, professor and chair, Department of Cancer Biology, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Marisa Luck, MD/PhD student, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Ginny McCarthy, MDiv, director, ministry, Health Sciences Campus
  • Aaron Michelfelder, MD, FAAFP, FAAMA, professor and chair, Department of Family Medicine; co-director, Institute of Transformative Interprofessional Education
  • James Mendez, PhD, associate dean, student affairs and assistant professor, medical education, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Vikram (Vic) Prabhu, MD, FACS, professor, neurological surgery, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Trent Reed, DO, FACEP, professor, Department of Emergency Medicine and Medical Education; chair, Department of Medical Education; assistant dean and director, simulation education; director, continuing medical education, Stritch School of Medicine
  • Kevin Simpson, MD, FACP, FCCP, professor of medicine; associate chair, postgraduate education; program director
  • William Small, Jr., MD, FACRO, FACR, FASTRO, professor and chair, Department of Radiation Oncology; director, Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center

We are confident that Dr. Marzo will continue to shape and grow the Stritch School of Medicine. He will do so while remaining attentive to the unique needs of its students, faculty, and staff. With Jesuit values as part of his moral foundation, Dr. Marzo will be a steward of the relationship between Loyola and our academic medical-center partner. And he will be attentive to the needs of our surrounding communities in our ever-connected world. He will be a leader when facing the challenges and embracing the opportunities that we must approach together.

While many in our community, particularly at the Health Sciences Campus, know Dr. Marzo, we will share information soon about opportunities to welcome him formally and provide opportunities for the University community to meet him.

Together in Loyola,
Norberto Grzywacz, PhD
Provost and Chief Academic Officer