Maupin to retire; Montgomery Rice to become president at Morehouse School of Medicine

John Maupin Jr., president of the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, will retire at the end of the next school year and, effective July 1, 2014, Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice will replace him.

Dr. Montgomery Rice, 51, was named executive vice president and dean in 2011, and she will retain the title of dean in her new role next year. In 2010, the Morehouse board approved a leadership structure change which called for a merging the roles of president and dean upon Maupin's retirement.

Maupin, a dentist, took over as president in July 2006.

“The vision is crystal clear,” Montgomery Rice said in a news release. “My role is to continue to further the mission while also positioning the school to remain relevant and at the forefront of an ever-changing medical education environment.”

According to the release, Montgomery Rice will become first African-American woman to lead a freestanding medical school in the U.S. The release also noted that only 16% of the nation's medical schools are led by a female dean.

Morehouse, as of March 13, had an enrollment of 357 students, including 236 seeking medical degrees and 54 seeking a Master's in public health degree. There were 53 medical degrees awarded to the Class of 2013. Notable Morehouse alumni include Dr. Regina Benjamin, the U.S. Surgeon General, who graduated from Morehouse in 1982.

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