College President-elect Jim Yong Kim's experience in graduate education make him well suited to lead Dartmouth, the deans of Dartmouth's three graduate schools said in interviews with The Dartmouth. Many involved with Dartmouth's graduate schools said Kim's broad range of experience will allow him to serve effectively at the College.
Dartmouth Medical School Dean William Green said Kim was an ideal choice because of his varied background, which includes expertise in global health, medicine and academia in addition to experience in teaching, leadership and fundraising.
Green said Kim's background prepares him particularly well to deal with issues specific to DMS. After working within Harvard University's elaborate system of hospitals, Kim is well prepared to head Dartmouth's similar system, Green said.
"Coming from the Harvard system, he's fluent in understanding academic medical centers," Green said. "He's going to come in with a robust understanding of how everything ties together."
Kim has built strong relationships with several major foundations and corporations that support global health initiatives, including Eli Lilly, the Gates Foundation and the Soros Foundation, through his work at Partners in Health, a non-profit international health care organization. These groups have not previously expressed interest in supporting Dartmouth.
"I'm very excited about the potential in that area," Green said, noting that further fundraising decisions will be made after Kim takes office this summer.
Kim's background will also provide him with a knowledgable perspective on the upcoming search for a new DMS dean, according to DMS professor and Global Health Initiative director Lisa Adams. The search follows the abrupt departure of former DMS Dean Stephen Spielberg last January.
"He understands medical school administration," Adams said. "I think he will make that dean position awfully attractive."
Beyond his medical background, Kim has broad experience that will benefit all of the College's graduate programs, Tuck School of Business Dean Paul Danos said.
"I think he's going to be very sensitive to the professional schools, and I think that he has a lot of sensitivity to the special features of Dartmouth," Danos said. "He's definitely not just an M.D."
Kim emphasized in a previous interview with The Dartmouth that he is prepared to lead the institution as a whole, not just DMS, and that he will strive to foster connections among the College and all three of its graduate schools.
Thayer School of Engineering Dean Joseph Helble, a member of the presidential search committee, also said Kim's skills apply to all areas of graduate study within the College.
"We're all applied scientists," he said. "We all believe in tackling problems that are important to society, and that's what he has done."
Kim's experience across many fields was what attracted the presidential search committee to him, Helble said.
"He's an inspiring and inspired individual," Helble said. "I think he understands and embodies everything that is Dartmouth and everything we hope to become."
Danos echoed Helble's sentiment, saying that Kim's dedication to fostering growth within all academic divisions at the College makes him the perfect fit for the position.
"I can't imagine someone who has a better balance," Danos said. "He has everything it takes to do a really outstanding job for Dartmouth."
Green emphasized that Kim's experience with graduate education will not overshadow the importance of Dartmouth's undergraduate students.
"I think at this juncture, we now understand that we're a small liberal arts college with three really excellent professional schools," Green said. "Tied to a world-class research hospital, it's a very complex system, but he won't be overwhelmed by our complexity."
Adams agreed, saying she felt that the differences between undergraduate and graduate students are not too broad for Kim to be able to relate to both communities.
"I see the education of young people as a spectrum," she said. "Seniors in college and first-year medical students aren't all that different."
While Kim does not have a long history with Dartmouth, Helble said he will represent the College "extremely well."
"What was important to us throughout the search was to find someone who understands Dartmouth, shares its values, appreciates its history and recognizes its potential," Helble said. "We found all those things with him."
Calvin Liu Th'09 said he hopes Kim will strike a balance between fostering undergraduate education and stimulating the College's graduate programs.
"As a grad student, I feel like Dartmouth is really committed to undergraduate education," Liu said. "That's a really good thing, but I'd like to see more interaction between the grad schools and the College. I think that's a really important part of our education."
Kim has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in anthropology, social medicine and global health at Harvard and has said he hopes to teach at Dartmouth after he assumes office on July 1. Green said he values this commitment to teaching and looks forward to what Kim can bring to College classrooms, as well as to the president's office.
"I think it's really important to stay connected with the students, and his interest in doing that is commendable," Green said.
Thomas Frandsen DMS '11 said he would be interested in taking a class taught by Kim.
"Someone who was the director of the [World Health Organization's HIV/AIDS division] is obviously going to be a good person for leadership and for teaching courses," he said.
Interest in Kim's courses will definitely be high, especially at DMS, according to Mark Tyson DMS '10.
"There's a lot of people here who would go nuts over that," he said.
