White Woman Takes Over as President of Historically Black Medical School

Recently, Susan Kelley was installed as president of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles. This historically black institution, which enrolls about 100 medical students, has been beset with all kinds of financial and academic problems in recent years. Kelley, a native of Australia, is the first woman and the first Caucasian to lead the institution. She has actually been on the job since May but was not formally inaugurated until this month.

Kelley has a big job ahead. The affiliated Martin Luther King/Drew Medical Center will lose its federal funding at the end of the year. This makes it imperative for Kelley to find a new hospital for the medical school’s residents. She also vows to increase student enrollments, raise necessary funds, and to construct two new buildings on campus.

Kelley, a graduate of the University of Tasmania majoring in psychology and English literature, is not a medical doctor. She does hold a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Melbourne.

Copyright © 2006. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.