LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Toni M. Ganzel, M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.S., has been named dean of the University of Louisville School of Medicine. Her appointment is effective on or before June 1 and is subject to approval by the UofL Board of Trustees.
Ganzel has served as interim dean since March 2012, replacing Edward Halperin, M.D., who stepped down as dean in early 2012.
“Dr. Ganzel was a key member of the team that helped develop the partnership between the University of Louisville and KentuckyOne Health,” said David L. Dunn, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president for health affairs. “She is critical to the implementation of our strategic initiatives as it relates to attacking many of the health issues we face within Kentucky. Additionally, she led the School of Medicine through the arduous self study and the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) site visit, the national accrediting body for schools of medicine. She has worked tirelessly to ensure that our school continues to meet the needs of our faculty, staff and students and that we work to fulfill our mission for the UofL becoming a premier metropolitan research university.
“She enthusiastically has launched a formal strategic planning process so that we continue to raise the profile of the UofL School of Medicine as an institution for the 21st Century.”
“We are delighted that Dr. Ganzel has accepted the position. Her extraordinary leadership makes her the right person at the right time to lead the University of Louisville School of Medicine,” said Shirley Willihnganz, Ph.D., executive vice president and university provost.
Ganzel joined UofL in 1983 as an assistant professor in otolaryngology. She served as chief of otolaryngology at Kosair Children’s Hospital from 1989 to 2002 and director of the division of otolaryngology at UofL from 1993 to 2001, when she was named associate dean of student affairs for the School of Medicine. In 2003 she was named senior associate dean for students and academic affairs in the school.
A native of New Mexico, Ganzel earned her bachelor of science and medical degrees from the University of Nebraska. She earned a master’s degree in business administration/medical group management from the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. She completed her residency in otolaryngology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center before joining the faculty at the Creighton University School of Medicine. She is a fellow of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program for Women at Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia. ELAM is the nation’s only in-depth program that develops the professional and personal skills required to lead and manage in today’s complex health care environment, with special attention to the unique challenges facing women in leadership positions.
“We are in one of the most dynamic times ever for medicine in terms of care delivery, education and research,” Ganzel said. “I am honored that I will have the opportunity to partner with Dr. Dunn and others throughout our university, our community and our commonwealth to transform care and health.”