Davis Named New Head of University of Minnesota Medical School - Duluth Campus

July 2, 2007, Duluth, MN      Gary L. Davis, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist and 32-year faculty member of the University of Minnesota Medical School -- Duluth Campus, has been named its new chief academic officer by Medical School Dean Deborah Powell.  Davis will be responsible for all aspects of the Duluth Campus mission:  education, research, university service and outreach, and certain clinical service. 

In her announcement of the appointment, Dean Deborah Powell commented, “I have come to appreciate Dr. Davis’s talents and respect his judgment during the months he served as interim senior associate dean. Davis brings integrity, thoughtfulness, and strong communication skills to this important role in our Medical School. I am proud to name him to this position and look forward to working with him on behalf of the University of Minnesota Medical School and the health of the people of Minnesota.”

Commenting on his appointment, Dr. Davis said, "It's well known that rural Minnesota faces a severe shortage of physicians and Native American communities need more Indian doctors.  I am pleased to be taking on that challenge as I work with the faculty and staff on this campus and physician-teachers from Minnesota communities who have shown unwavering commitment to that mission since this school began in the early 1970s.”

Davis, a licensed clinical psychologist in Minnesota, has been chair of the Behavioral Sciences Department on the Medical School’s Duluth Campus since 1984.  He holds the positions of associate professor and associate director of the Center for Rural Mental Health Studies. In addition, he is an associate member of graduate faculty of the University and a diplomate and fellow in psychopharmacology and serious mental illness. Davis succeeds Richard Ziegler whose term as dean of the Duluth Campus ended in 2006.    

Davis has received numerous awards over the years, including being named Minnesota’s Rural Health Hero in 2006 at a state conference co-sponsored by the Minnesota Department of Health - Office of Rural Health and Primary Care, the Minnesota Rural Health Association and the Rural Health Resource Center. The award recognized his pioneering work integrating telemental health care into rural family physicians' offices.  In 1998, he received the Pioneer Award in Psychopharmacology by the Prescribing Psychologists Register, the first training and credentialing organization for psychologists in psychopharmacology.  

Davis joined the University of Minnesota Medical School Duluth in 1974.  He is a member of the American Psychological Association; Association of Medical School Professors of Psychology; National Association for Rural Mental Health; Prescribing Psychologists Register; and the Board of Trustees of the Minnesota Medical Foundation. 

In Duluth, Davis is a member of the executive committee of the Duluth Graduate Medical Education Council and the executive committee of the Lake Superior Medical Society. He has been involved in youth soccer clubs, the Minnesota Ballet Company, and in organizations involved in suicide prevention, hospice, and clinical pastoral education.

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