2024 Investiture Ceremony Celebrates Donors and Faculty Innovations

Medical College of Wisconsin leadership, donors, faculty, family members and friends gathered at the Iron Horse Hotel in Milwaukee recently to celebrate MCW scientists and clinicians who were appointed to hold donor-named positions in 2024.

The event featured remarks by John R. Raymond, Sr., President and CEO, and Joseph E. Kerschner, MD, the Julia A. Uihlein Dean of the School of Medicine, Provost and Executive Vice President. Jason Kraiss, MCW’s Vice President for Institutional Advancement, also addressed the audience.

“We are here to celebrate the benefactors whose partnerships are driving the new research discoveries, the clinical innovations, and the collaborations that are improving the health of our communities,” Kraiss said.

Donor-named positions are established through philanthropic gifts (usually endowed) that provide an annual and reliable source of funds to pursue new research, translate scientific discoveries into treatments and cures, and support innovative educational opportunities. The gifts reflect donor legacies that ensure a substantial impact over time. Receiving a donor-named position is highly sought-after and critical to recruiting scientists and clinicians to conduct research and treat patients.

“Tonight’s event reflects the dedication of all of us at MCW to collaborate closely with donors and our distinguished faculty and to accelerate healthcare benefits for patients and families,” said Dr. Raymond. “This work is possible only at an academic medical center, and we are truly grateful for the impact of these donors on patients and families.”

Dr. Kerschner served as host for the program, during which ceremonial medals were presented to each holder of a donor-named position, accompanied by remarks about the donor and the faculty member. The 2024 event recognized:

Sara Kohlbeck, PhD, MPH, the inaugural Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Professor. The professorship is part of a $5 million investment to support research to better understand suicide and how to prevent it. This contribution was from Betty Kubly and her late husband, Mike, a 1963 graduate of the Marquette School of Medicine, the predecessor institution for MCW. The gift also established the Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Program, which will be used to prevent suicide in the community and across the state.

Todd Miller, PhD, the WBCS Professor of Breast Cancer Research and Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology. The professorship was created in 2011. Formerly known as the Wisconsin Breast Cancer Showhouse, WBCS has made gifts totaling $6.5 million generated through community fundraising events and has also established a separate professorship in prostate cancer research.

Daisy Sahoo, PhD, the Dean of the Medical College of Wisconsin School of Graduate Studies and the inaugural holder of the Women in Science Endowed Professorship. The professorship has its roots in MCW’s Women in Science Lecture Series, which was launched in May of 2007 as a forum for scientific presentations to the community and to elevate the role of women working in medical discovery at MCW.

Shelly Timmons, MD, PhD, the Sanford J. Larson Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery. Faculty, friends and alumni of the department of neurosurgery have contributed to the chair, which was created in 2011 to honor Sanford J. Larson, MD, PhD, professor and chair of the department of neurosurgery from 1963-1999.

“These distinguished faculty leaders who have received donor-named professorships accelerate life-changing discoveries and shape the future of academic medicine,” said Dr. Kerschner. “The generosity and leadership of our donors embody a significant legacy of impact and transformation by providing critical, sustainable funding for MCW to realize its mission in perpetuity.”

(l-r): Dr. Kerschner, Dr. Sahoo, and Dr. Raymond at the 2024 Investiture Ceremony.

Billie Kubly presents Dr. Kohlbeck with the Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Professorship medallion.