Chapter 07: Provost and EVP at MD Anderson: an Overview

In this chapter, Dr. DuBois provides an overview of the position he assumed when coming to MD Anderson in 2012. He first shares his impressions of Dr. John Mendelsohn, then president of MD Anderson, then notes that he was involved in assisting Dr. Mendelsohn secure the $150 million gift from the Khalifa Foundation of the United Arab Emirates.Next he explains that his mandate from Dr. Mendelsohn was to develop the institution\u27s research to higher levels. He describes what had been set in place by the time he arrived, including Dr.Mendelsohn\u27s idea of the cancer care cycle. He explains that he focused on stimulating collaboration across the institution, getting teams to work well together, and on supporting study of patients who were unusual responders to treatment. Dr. DuBois talks about setting up his own lab on South Campus.Next, he mentions that, when asked what MD Anderson could do to move to the cutting edge of research, he responded that immunotherapy would be a fruitful research path. He explains that he already knew Jim Allison and his work and began speaking with Dr. Allison about coming to MD Anderson. 3Dr. DuBois then explains that he was hired into a role of Provost when the position had previously been titled, Chief Academic Officer, to send more of an academic message. He explains what the former CAO had set in place before he arrived.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/mchv_interviewchapters/1661/thumbnail.jp