The George D. Gross, M.D. and Ester S. Gross, M.D. Presidential Endowed Chair in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
George and Ester Gross spent their lives caring for others which is evidenced through their careers of service in family medicine. The endowed chair, established in June 2002, is used to find cures, treatments, and causes of diseases associated with family and preventive medicine.
[This chair is currently unfilled.]
Previous Chair Holders: Peter Catinella, MD, MPH (2007-2010), Joseph Stanford, MD, MSPH (2011-2014), and Kolawole Okuyemi, MD, MPH (2017-2024)
Dr. Nymphus Frederick Hicken, Alta Thomas Hicken and Margarete Stahl Wilkin Hicken Endowed Chair in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
Dr. Nymphus Frederick Hicken was a loyal and esteemed alumnus of the University of Utah School of Medicine. He distinguished himself as an outstanding physician and surgeon, exemplifying the highest of ethics and care for his patients.
The endowed chair was established in August 1998 to honor the Hicken family. The chairship aims to discover new treatments and cures to improve patient care and the quality of life.
Kyle Bradford Jones, MD, FAAFP was appointed to the chairship in April 2024.
Previous Chair Holders: Michael K. Magill, MD (2000), and Jennifer Leiser, MD (2023)
T.F.H. Morton, M.D. Medical Fund in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine
Dr. Thomas Fincher Harry Morton practiced in Salt Lake City, UT from 1912 to 1950. The endowed chair was established in May 1993 by Carmen M Christensen to honor her father, Dr. Morton.
Steven Lacey, PhD, CIH, CSP, FAIHA and Jim VanDerslice, PhD were appointed to the chairship in September 2022.
Previous Chair Holders: Marc Babitz, MD (1994-1999 and 2005-2008), George White, MD (2000-2005), Susan Cochella, MD, MPH (2009-2012), Stephen Alder, PhD, MBA (2017-2021), and Jennifer Leiser, MD (2017-2021)
The Don Pedersen Endowed Chair in the Division of Physician Assistant Studies
Don and Kathy Pedersen have dedicated their careers to advocating and developing the physician assistant profession. Don served as the Division of Physician Assistant Studies’ first academic coordinator before leading the program as program director, and division chief. He was instrumental in the development of the national Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) research arm and the founding of the Journal of Physician Assistant Education. Don and Kathy established a global learning abroad programs for Utah’s physician assistant trainees in Papua New Guinea, Thailand, and Nepal.
The Pedersen’s established the chair position to commemorate the impact Don Pedersen has made on UPAP and on physician assistant training and clinical work in Utah and globally.
Established in February 2021, the endowed chair provides financial resources to advance important initiatives within the University’s Division of Physician Assistant Studies. The endowed chair is one of the few endowed chairs in the field of physician assistant studies nationally and the first of its kind in Utah.
Leigh Elrod, DPAS, MPAS, PA-C was appointed to the chairship in January 2023.