Investiture for Harold M. Maurer, M.D. as UNMC’s New
Chancellor To Be Held Friday, June 11 at Joslyn Art Museum
Harold M. Maurer, M.D., will be formally installed as the seventh chancellor
of the University of Nebraska Medical Center at a special investiture ceremony
to be held at 10:30 a.m., Friday, June 11, in the Witherspoon Concert Hall
of the Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge St.
The investiture is a standard ritual for higher education institutions
to celebrate individuals who attain the position of chancellor, the highest
ranking position in most universities. The event is rich in academic tradition
and colorful regalia. More than 300 people are expected to attend. Participants
in the ceremony will include members of the University of Nebraska Board
of Regents, key administrators from all four campuses in the University
of Nebraska System, delegates from other universities, leading community
officials, as well as the Maurer family and friends.
One of the highlights of the investiture will be a procession of about
60 UNMC faculty members dressed in full academic attire. Guest speaker
at the investiture will be Walter Lawrence, Jr., M.D., professor of surgery
emeritus and director emeritus of the Massey Cancer Center, Medical College
of Virginia/Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Va. Dr. Maurer
became a friend of Dr. Lawrence while serving on the faculty at the Medical
College of Virginia from 1968 to 1993.
In addition to Dr. Lawrence, other participants in the program will
include: Nancy O’Brien, Ph.D., chair of the University of Nebraska Board
of Regents; L. Dennis Smith, Ph.D., president of the University of Nebraska;
Dr. Maurer; Mary Helms, president of the UNMC Faculty Senate; and Cantor
Frances Goldman of the Congregation Beth Ahabah in Richmond.
Dr. Maurer (pronounced More-er) served as professor and chairman of
the Department of Pediatrics for Children’s Medical Center at the Medical
College of Virginia prior to joining UNMC in 1993 as dean of the College
of Medicine. He served as dean for five years before being named
chancellor effective Dec. 1, 1998.
Dr. Maurer’s career is distinguished by his research on rhabdomyosarcoma,
the most common type of cancer found in the soft tissues of children. For
26 years, he chaired the Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group, a national
group that is credited with raising the cure rate for children with this
disease from 25 percent to 75 percent.
As dean of the UNMC College of Medicine, Dr. Maurer reshaped the clinical
enterprise to meet managed care needs. He helped lead the merger of University
Hospital and Clarkson Hospital to form Nebraska Health System in 1997.
Under his direction, the college raised academic standards for medical
student graduation, increased the use of computer-aided instruction and
problem-based learning and expanded the number of primary care residencies
to include North Platte and Scottsbluff in addition to Omaha and Lincoln.
Dr. Maurer earned his bachelor’s degree from New York University and
his medical degree from the State University of New York Downstate Medical
Center at Brooklyn. He and his wife, Beverly, have two grown daughters,
who both reside in Florida.
The six previous UNMC chancellors and the years they served were: Cecil
L. Wittson, M.D., 1969 to 1971; Robert D. Sparks, M.D., 1972 to 1976; Neal
A. Vanselow, M.D., 1977 to 1982; Charles E. Andrews, M.D., 1983 to 1991;
Carol Aschenbrener, M.D., 1992 to 1996; and William O. Berndt, Ph.D., 1996
to 1998. Interim chancellors were: Henry W. McFadden, M.D., 1971 to 1972
and 1976 to 1977; James V. Griesen, Ph.D., 1982 to 1983; and Dr. Berndt,
1991 to 1992.
A reception will be held immediately following the investiture ceremony
in the Storz Fountain Court of the Joslyn Art Museum. In addition, a campus
reception for Dr. Maurer will be held at 2:30 p.m. on June 11 in the grassy
area just east of the concourse which connects University Hospital and
Clarkson Hospital at 43rd and Dewey Avenue.
As UNMC chancellor, Dr. Maurer heads a campus that includes 2,600 students,
3,550 faculty and staff and has budget of more than $259 million. UNMC’s
College of Nursing has divisions in Omaha, Lincoln, Kearney and Scottsbluff,
and the UNMC College of Dentistry is located in Lincoln. Founded in 1869
as the Omaha Medical College, UNMC first affiliated with the University
of Nebraska in 1902 and became a separate campus in 1968.
UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state.
Through its commitment to research, education, patient care and outreach,
UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for
cancer research and treatment and solid organ transplantation. More than
$34 million in research grants and contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists
annually. In addition, UNMC’s educational programs are responsible for
training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other
institution.