Julio Frenk Inaugural Address (English)

CHARTING THE COURSE TO OUR NEW CENTURY

JA N UA RY 29, 2 016

INAUGURAL ADDRESS JULIO FRENK SI XTH PR E SIDEN T OF TH E U N I V ER SIT Y OF M I A M I

and remarks by

Drew Gilpin Faust P R E S I D E N T O F H A R VA R D U N I V E R S I T Y

In a ceremony that both honored the past and provided a look at the future, Julio Frenk was inaugurated as the sixth president of the University of Miami on January 29, 2016.

Frenk used his inaugural address to chart a new course for the University, outlining how it will achieve greatness in four defining aspirations by its 100th birthday in ten years.

Delegates from 99 universities and learned societies; elected officials and civic and business leaders from across Miami-Dade County and Florida; and diplomatic representatives from 28 countries witnessed Frenk’s investiture, held in the BankUnited Center with more than 3,000 people in attendance, including faculty, trustees, students, staff, alumni, and guests. A live webstream in three languages (English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole) enabled 9,000 more to see history in the making.

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JANUARY 29, 2016

CHARTING THE COURSE TO OUR NEW CENTURY

G

ood afternoon. Buenas tardes.

Bon après-midi. Bonswa. Boa tarde.

Trustees, deans, alumni, faculty, staff, students, benefactors, family and friends: Thank you all for being part of this special day at this remarkable institution. I am humbled by the opportunity to build on the outstanding legacy of my five predecessors and feel especially fortunate that Donna Shalala is here today.

I want to recognize the members of the Inauguration Steering Committee, especially honorary chairs Patricia and Phillip Frost, as well as Jorge Pérez, who led the fundraising efforts.

I gratefully acknowledge the presence of distinguished delegates from 99 universities and learned societies, including our sister institutions from the great state of Florida. Several current or former university presidents joining us today have been valued colleagues and mentors to me, including our guest speaker Drew Faust.

This Inauguration is also elevated by the attendance of government, civic, and

business leaders from the Miami-Dade area and the state of Florida, as well as diplomatic representatives from 28 countries.

There are many persons here who have played a crucial role in my life. Time does not allow me to mention everyone by name, but each of you knows that I will always be grateful for your support. I do want to recognize my loving and lovely family, represented by my wife—who is also a respected colleague—her brother, three of my children, and two of my sisters.

Welcome to all!

At about the time I was named this University’s sixth president, we broke ground on a construction project. Our campus has been in a state of constant renewal, but this project was special, because it was borne from a desire to strengthen connection.

For decades, the eastern part of Lake Osceola on the Coral Gables campus had been impassable to the western side. The bridge that got under way last summer was meant to address that limitation. The Weese family, whose daughter Hannah is in the class of 2016, helped fund the project and dedicated it in honor of her late grandfather.

He was a successful businessman who believed in shaping circumstance, rather than being shaped by it.

Three months ago, on a warm, clear October day, we officially opened what is now called the Fate Bridge, and together we crossed it for the first time, celebrating not just completion but connection.

When I think about all I have come to know about this University and where I believe we should head, I find myself focused on the opportunities that come from building bridges.

Before constructing a bridge, engineers draw up plans, and surveyors chart the terrain. I have been myself a surveyor of ideas these last six months. Shortly after I arrived, I convened a town hall meeting

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to kick off an intensive listening exercise.

The response was inspiring.

All in all, we held more than 40 meetings attended by some 5,000 faculty, students, staff, alumni, trustees, and community leaders. We also set up a virtual mailbox that received more than 1,500 suggestions— and that’s without counting all the unsolicited advice about football coaching.

Through this process, I have learned that, for a young university, we are immensely proud of our roots and our humble beginnings. We are resilient—enduring and growing through times of turmoil, threat, and challenge. And we have an extraordinary capacity for renewal— reinventing ourselves and leaning in to hurricane-strength forces that reshape our landscape, literally and figuratively.

I have also learned that we are driven by a deep commitment to reach new heights.

Just ten years from now the University will celebrate its Centennial. Where should we set our sights for the next decade? What must we do to fulfill our potential in our new century?

Today I will share what I have come to see as our greatest aspirations—four defining visions for our future. We aspire to be: n n n n

The hemispheric university The excellent university The relevant university The exemplary university

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“The University of Miami is uniquely positioned to be the hemispheric university. . . .We will develop a thoughtful hemispheric strategy based on broad partnerships and institutional consortia.”

THE HEMISPHERIC UNIVERSITY The first of these aspirations speaks to our distinct geographic endowment—our unique capacity to build bridges that connect the Americas. Many universities seek global engagement, but the University of Miami is uniquely positioned to be the hemispheric university.

This idea dates back to our very beginnings, when our founders spoke of a Pan American spirit that should imbue their new university. Today that early aspiration continues to unfold—even as the bridges that span cultures and continents grow in number and strength.

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As I have traveled the globe, I have become convinced that Latin America and the Caribbean must emerge as more prominent voices in our global conversations. These regions hold lessons that the world needs.

Miami has long served as a bridge between North and South America, but we can take even greater advantage of our strategic location. Our bridges must extend from the Old World embedded within the New World and beyond.

We will develop a thoughtful hemispheric strategy based on broad partnerships and institutional consortia. The raw materials for these bridges come in many forms.

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They include research collaborations, new approaches for sharing knowledge, and exchange programs for students. We often call such programs “study abroad,” but we might better call them “study within”—the opportunity to live inside another culture in ways that both enrich and transform.

Building on our founders’ prescient vision, we are on track to become a force for integration across the Americas and, ultimately, throughout the world. As your President, I commit to making this happen.

THE EXCELLENT UNIVERSITY For me, one of this University’s greatest attractions has been its palpable desire to advance to the next level. That drive for excellence permeates every domain of our work—from research to public service, from teaching to athletics, from health care to the arts.

Yet, the pursuit of excellence is being challenged by the pressure to demonstrate short-term value. Increasingly, research funders require evidence of immediate impact, forgetting that many technologies that have changed the world began with a researcher asking: “Why?” Or “what if?”

Similarly, the arts and humanities are often dismissed on the grounds that they lack socalled practical value—despite their crucial role in giving context to our choices and meaning to our lives.

Another threat to excellence is fragmentation into silos that divide people, ideas, and disciplines. The result is that the whole can become less than the sum of its parts. We must combat this tendency in academia by striving to build bridges, not empires. Much of this University’s potential stems from the fact that—for all the diverse strengths of our 11 colleges and schools—we are ONE U. In this spirit, we will foster connections across disciplines spanning from molecules to meaning.

To enhance our drive for excellence, we will mount a major effort to attract what we are calling “100 new talents for 100 years.” Between now and our Centennial, I am committed to mobilizing the resources to fund 100 new endowed faculty chairs, with a mix of senior, junior, and visiting professorships. The infusion of new recruitments to our outstanding faculty will help build a critical mass of talent in Miami.

This effort will cover the different fields of research, scholarship, artistic creation, and education that our comprehensive University cultivates.

In an age when scientific and technological advances are changing society at a lightning pace, any university striving for excellence must have depth in science and engineering. Building on our current strengths, I am delighted to announce a major new initiative to support basic and applied science and engineering, thanks to an extraordinary gift of $100 million from Phillip and Patricia Frost. You will hear

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“I am delighted to announce a major new initiative to support basic and applied science and engineering, thanks to an extraordinary gift of $100 million from Phillip and Patricia Frost.”

much more about this transformational gift in the weeks ahead. For now, let me say this: Phil and Pat, thank you. Your generosity will carry us further and faster in our quest for excellence, and is a powerful example of the enduring commitment of our benefactors. They have made our journey possible, and they will light the path to our future. I look forward to working with our faculty to shape this new initiative for maximum impact.

Educational innovation represents another exciting frontier for universities. We owe the relentless pursuit of pedagogical excellence to our students, who are

our most enduring legacy and the most energizing force on our campuses. We will therefore develop a University-wide platform to take full advantage of the current revolution in teaching and learning.

However, excellence can be undermined by the impulse to measure the value of education through the narrow lens of what might be called “instant post-graduation gratification”—gauging the value of a degree by a graduate’s starting salary.

At the same time, we must not ignore legitimate and growing concerns about student debt, which are leading many to question whether a degree is worth its cost.

“We owe the relentless pursuit of pedagogical excellence to our students, who are our most enduring legacy and the most energizing force on our campuses.”

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“We must build a bridge between excellence and access. . . . I am committed to boosting financial aid to meet 100 percent of student need.”

If education is to fulfill its crucial function of expanding opportunities, we must build a bridge between excellence and access. Excellence without access leads to frustration and deepens social inequality.

Access without excellence leads to waste and can reinforce inequality by segmenting opportunity according to wealth. While it may take us a while to get there, as your President I am committed to boosting financial aid to meet 100 percent of student need.

THE RELEVANT UNIVERSITY Along with excellence, we must commit to relevance—our third aspiration. This is not an “either/or” proposition. In my own career I have moved back and forth between research and its translation into policy and practice. And I have seen, again and again, that the two reinforce each other. Knowledge—the enduring product of universities—is crucial to understanding the world in a meaningful way and also to pursuing enlightened social transformation.

From its very origins, this University has been driven by the dual commitment to

excellence and relevance, pursuing the highest academic standards while also serving the local and global communities to which it belongs. Today more than ever before, we must build a sturdy bridge that connects scholarship to solutions.

For instance, rising sea levels—a major threat to Miami as well as the rest of the world—was discussed repeatedly during my listening exercise. Climate change is an arena where virtually every academic discipline has something to contribute, and where our institution is already showing the way forward. In the coming months, we will announce a new University-wide effort to expand our considerable expertise in sea level rise. This is exactly the kind of transformative, global contribution that Miami can and should be making to the search for sustainable solutions.

Health care is another area where we serve our community. We are enormously proud of our academic health system, but this is a time of profound change. Only health systems that successfully navigate this uncharted territory will thrive in the future.

We at the University of Miami will lead the way in the new era of value-based integrated health care.

“We must build a sturdy bridge that connects scholarship to solutions.”

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“We at the University of Miami will lead the way in the new era of value-based integrated health care.”

Technological innovation offers yet another opportunity for expanded impact.

The University of Miami is uniquely positioned to propel the development of a major innovation hub with hemispheric scope, one that draws on our strengths in the life sciences, nanotechnology, and computational science, among other fields.

We are already talking to potential partners and envision this hub as central to the work that lies ahead.

Our founders conceived of the University of Miami as a vitally relevant catalyst for progress, and as your President, I commit to our full engagement for the good of our community and our world.

THE EXEMPLARY UNIVERSITY Finally, we aspire to be an example to society: an exemplary university. At a time when many voices question the value universities add, I would submit that our value is indivisible from our values. Integrity, respect, diversity, tolerance, resilience—such qualities are at the heart of who we are and who we want to be.

Take our athletics programs, which draw millions of eyes to the University and give us a chance to model the importance of fair and respectful competition. Through these programs, we also send the critical message that academic and athletic success can go hand in hand, and can promote healthy development during the college years. In addition, I have seen here a team pride that permeates daily life, reinforces a sense of character, and helps build a feeling of connection that strengthens us all.

One of the most important ways to be exemplary is by embracing diversity, whatever form it takes. As I said in a recent message to the University community, “each of us has a responsibility to confront injustice and discrimination.” It is in this spirit that we have adopted the recommendations from the Task Force on Black Students’ Concerns. We have also announced a plan to develop genderinclusive housing to better meet the needs of the students who have done so much to open our eyes to gender identity issues.

I want to stress that diversity by numbers is not enough. My dear colleague, Drew Faust, has spoken about the notion of belonging—a sense of feeling at home, a

“The University of Miami is uniquely positioned to propel the development of a major innovation hub with hemispheric scope.”

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“At a time when many voices question the value universities add, I would submit that our value is indivisible from our values. . . . diversity by numbers is not enough. . . . Drew Faust has spoken about the notion of belonging—a sense of feeling at home, a sense that each and every one of us matters.”

sense that each and every one of us matters.

Creating such an environment is no small task. It is somewhat ironic that in our interconnected world so many people feel the alienation that comes from a lack of meaningful connection to others. We need not only virtual connectivity but also real connectedness. To this end, we will develop policies and practices that foster inclusive, respectful, and safe interactions throughout our campuses.

must lead the way by intentionally cultivating the free expression of diverse perspectives. The great British philosopher Sir Isaiah Berlin has proposed the comparative study of other cultures as an antidote to the dangerous delusion by individuals, states, political parties, ideologies, or religions of being the sole possessors of truth. The goal is to promote empathy, so that we may value both our differences and our common humanity.

Diversity can only flourish in a climate of tolerance—a value that is again under threat. In our turbulent times, universities

For me this is deeply personal. My father and his family were forced to leave Germany in the 1930s. I would not

“We need not only virtual connectivity but also real connectedness.”

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“In our turbulent times, universities must lead the way by intentionally cultivating the free expression of diverse perspectives.”

be here today if they had not found a welcoming refuge in Mexico, a country that was poor economically but rich in the ways that matter most—tolerance, kindness to strangers, solidarity with those who suffer persecution. These values are as important today as when my family was given the opportunity to start a new life. I know that many of you share similar stories.

I am proud to be this University’s first Hispanic president. (Me siento orgulloso de ser el primer rector hispano de esta Universidad.) At the same time, I am keenly aware that each of us holds diverse identities. The resolve to stand against the external forces of discrimination and intolerance can be strengthened if we

embrace our inner diversity. In this way we can counter an exclusionary definition of the “others.” Each of us is all of us. National politics and international diplomacy would be much more effective if they were driven by this conviction. Exemplary universities must demonstrate to the larger world that such an enlightened pathway is indeed possible.

I commit to serve this University as everyone’s President.

Since arriving on this campus, I have often thought how fitting it is that a force that once threatened our existence has become the symbol of our strength.

We are Hurricanes—now and always.

“The resolve to stand against the external forces of discrimination and intolerance can be strengthened if we embrace our inner diversity. . . . Each of us is all of us. . . . I commit to serve this University as everyone’s President.”

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INAUGURAL ADDRESS “Resilience is the capacity to not just overcome adversity but to be strengthened by it. . . . Renewal is not just the act of rebuilding. It is the process of reimagining, reinventing, and reinterpreting.”

That invincible spirit is also reflected in the symbol of the Ibis, which has been part of our identity from our earliest days.

Folklore tells us that the Ibis is the last wildlife to take shelter before a hurricane strikes and the first to reappear after the storm has passed—a symbol of the resilience and renewal that define us as a University.

Resilience is the capacity to not just overcome adversity but to be strengthened by it. To be smarter for it. From our finances to our football program, that is who we are.

Renewal is not just the act of rebuilding. It is the process of reimagining, reinventing, and reinterpreting. From music to medicine, that is who we are.

If you think about it, the Ibis is more than our mascot. It is more than a symbol. It is our identity, and our imperative.

I have no doubt that this same spirit will fuel our work as we continue to chart the course to our new century. If we all work together—students, faculty, staff, trustees, alumni, and benefactors—we will build new and necessary bridges to become a truly hemispheric, excellent, relevant, and exemplary university.

The University of Miami can be a beacon of resilience—demonstrating that knowledge is the best instrument for facing adversity, and that school spirit is a form of strength.

The University of Miami can be a model of renewal—redefining the global agenda and leading the way in the hemisphere, in the laboratory, in the classroom, on the playing fields, and in service to society.

With resilience and renewal, we can weather the winds of change buffeting higher education and the world at large, and emerge smarter and stronger.

With resilience and renewal, we can be looked to as a leader, and we can shape our destiny.

With resilience and renewal, the University of Miami can, like the Ibis, take flight, and soar.

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REMARKS BY DREW GILPIN FAUST, PRESIDENT OF HARVARD UNIVERSITY, on the occasion of the inauguration of President Julio Frenk apt to consider it a good thing to be destined for such a fate. No less than the late Bart Giamatti—who was president of Yale, before he escaped the academic fray to become commissioner of baseball—he once famously quipped, and I quote him, “Being president of a university is no way for an adult to make a living.” And one of my predecessors— Edward Holyoke remarked nearly 250 years ago, “If any man wishes to be humbled and mortified, let him become president of Harvard College.” But some of us are still willing to steel ourselves, take the plunge, and give it our best shot. And Julio’s willingness is sure to raise our collective game.

Chairman Miller, President Frenk, Lieutenant Governor López-Cantera, Congressman Curbelo, faculty, students, staff, friends of the University of Miami, it is a great privilege to join in saluting Julio Frenk as he assumes the role of university president. A great privilege, but not at all a surprise. Because, from the time Julio first took up his role as Dean of Public Health at Harvard, it was clear that he was captivated by the scope and potential of these curious institutions we call universities.

When he told me he wanted to lead this one, it seemed a natural—even inevitable—next step. A bit, perhaps, of destiny.

Now, I recognize that not everyone in the world—or even in the academic world—is

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Seven years ago, Julio came to Harvard to be a dean. And he excelled in that role—as an extraordinarily able and effective leader. He brought vision. He brought eloquence. He brought a thirst for excellence, and a passion for the power of education, a deep conviction in the promise of academic research to change the world for the better. He brought a wonderfully cosmopolitan outlook, a rare ability to straddle the world of ideas and the world of action, an enthusiasm for embracing the generative power of diversity and for inciting thoughtful change. If a test of a deanship is whether the dean’s school emerges stronger, more ambitious, and better positioned to thrive in the years ahead, Dean Frenk aced the test.

But Julio was much more than just the dean of his school. His reach and his grasp touched the university as a whole. He sought out collaborations. He forged creative connections with other parts of Harvard.

He encouraged the interplay of professional education and the liberal arts. He thought constantly, and with striking imagination, about how his own school could reap the benefits of being part of a larger university—and how his own school could, in turn, benefit the university as a whole.

He emerged as a voice of clarity and of

conscience on our university-wide Council of Deans. When hard issues were in front of us, when the occasional storms threatened to leave us in a puddle of ambivalence or indecision, often it was Julio whose voice framed things in just the right way, whose values elevated our discussion, whose insight pointed toward a promising path forward.

Occasions like our gathering today are opportunities to honor an individual. But, even more, they are opportunities to reflect on the institution the individual serves—why

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such institutions matter, what they hold dear and what they aspire to do, how they can best meet the challenges of a turbulent and often perplexing world. Julio Frenk comes to serve the University of Miami at an immensely consequential moment for universities like ours—whether they stand at the dynamic crossroads of the Americas, like this great university, or whether they’re sedately tucked away in the hinterlands of New England, like my own.

Never before in human history has education been more vital to the prospects of individuals—to the capacity of each of us to lead lives of meaning and value. Never has academic research held greater promise to help the world confront its most vexing problems. More than ever, ideas born in universities are the lifeblood of progress and prosperity. And yet, our universities face a dizzying array of challenges—and a rising chorus of doubt. Doubt about what and how we teach. Doubt about the value of our scholarship and research. Doubt about our commitments to free inquiry and expression as well as our commitments to creating fully inclusive environments for all members of our communities.

In Julio Frenk, the University of Miami welcomes a president who knows, deep in his soul, why universities matter— why they deserve and demand both our constant critical scrutiny and our profound encouragement and support.

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At a time when people depend so deeply on the enlightenment and skills that higher education can bring; at a time when the forces of globalization and technology open new pathways but also feed new anxieties; at a time when the search for mutual respect and harmonious relations among people of different backgrounds and perspectives is both elusive and essential; at a time when the ability to cross borders—intellectual, organizational, geographical—is more vital than ever to the progress of higher education; at a time when the values and questions of the humanities must infuse the answers and solutions of the sciences; at a time when the imaginative pursuit of knowledge and understanding holds promise to be the single most powerful force for good in the world—at such a time, our universities have a singular and indispensable role to play among society’s institutions.

For nearly a century, the University of Miami has brought those ideals vividly to life.

With Julio Frenk as its guide, and with the support and partnership of so many of you here today, we can be sure there will always be wisdom and imagination, creativity and calm, humanity and humility at the eye of the hurricane.

Julio—in the favoring company of colleagues and friends both old and new, I wish you bright skies and warm winds ahead.

Thank you very much.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES AND ADMINISTRATION Stuart A. Miller Chair Hilarie Bass Vice Chair Richard D. Fain Vice Chair SENIOR MEMBERS

Michael I. Abrams Betty G. Amos Jose P. Bared Fred Berens M. Anthony Burns Charles E. Cobb Edward A. Dauer Carlos M. de la Cruz, Sr. George Feldenkreis Phillip Frost Phillip T. George Thelma V.A. Gibson Rose Ellen Greene Arthur H. Hertz David Kraslow Arva Moore Parks Ronald G. Stone Patricia W. Toppel David R. Weaver G. Ed Williamson II Thomas D. Wood, Sr. NATIONAL MEMBERS

Nicholas A. Buoniconti Steven J. Green Carlos M. Gutierrez Lois Pope Alex E. Rodriguez REGULAR MEMBERS

Leonard Abess Hilarie Bass Jon Batchelor Doyle N. Beneby Tracey P. Berkowitz Joaquin F. Blaya Marc A. Buoniconti Alfred R. Camner Wayne E. Chaplin Paul J. DiMare Joseph J. Echevarria, Jr. David L. Epstein Richard D. Fain Barbara Hecht Havenick Allan M. Herbert Marilyn J. Holifield Manuel Kadre Bernard J. Kosar

Susan Lytle Lipton Daniela Lorenzo Jayne Sylvester Malfitano Robert A. Mann Stuart A. Miller William L. Morrison Judi Prokop Newman Jorge M. PĂŠrez Michael J. Piechoski Aaron S. Podhurst Steven J. Saiontz Laurie S. Silvers H. T. Smith, Jr. Steven Sonberg E. Roe Stamps, IV EX OFFICIO MEMBERS

Brenda Yester Baty President, Alumni Association

CORPORATE OFFICERS

Julio Frenk President Thomas J. LeBlanc Executive Vice President and Provost Steven M. Altschuler Senior Vice President of Health Affairs and CEO, UHealth Joseph T. Natoli Senior Vice President for Business and Finance and Chief Financial Officer Sergio M. Gonzalez Senior Vice President for University Advancement and External Affairs

Alfred A. Bunge Immediate Past President, Citizens Board

Steve Cawley Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer

John E. Calles Immediate Past President, Alumni Association

Mark Diaz Vice President for Budget and Planning

Julio Frenk President, University of Miami

Rudy Fernandez Chief of Staff to the President and Vice President for Government and Community Relations

Angel Vicente Gallinal President, Citizens Board Frank R. Jimenez President-Elect, Alumni Association EMERITI MEMBERS

Bernyce Adler Adrienne Arsht Paul L. Cejas Laura G. Coulter-Jones Edward W. Easton Gloria M. Estefan Enrique C. Falla, Sr. Alfonso Fanjul Peter T. Fay David I. Fuente M. Lee Pearce Fredric G. Reynolds Eduardo M. SardiĂąa Frank P. Scruggs Robert C. Strauss Gonzalo F. Valdes-Fauli Marta S. Weeks Wulf Barbara A. Weintraub Frances L. Wolfson Charles J. Zwick

Rudolph H. Green Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer John G. Haller Vice President for Enrollment Management Larry D. Marbert Vice President for Real Estate and Facilities Jacqueline R. Menendez Vice President for University Communications Nerissa E. Morris Vice President for Human Resources Geoffrey Kirles Vice President of Finance and Treasurer

Aileen M. Ugalde Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary of the University Patricia A. Whitely Vice President for Student Affairs Leslie Dellinger Aceituno Assistant Secretary of the University DEANS

Rodolphe el-Khoury School of Architecture Leonidas Bachas College of Arts and Sciences Eugene W. Anderson School of Business Administration Gregory J. Shepherd School of Communication Isaac Prilleltensky School of Education and Human Development Jean-Pierre Bardet College of Engineering Guillermo Prado Graduate School Patricia D. White School of Law Roni Avissar Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science Pascal J. Goldschmidt Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine Shelton G. Berg Phillip and Patricia Frost School of Music Nilda P. Peragallo Montano School of Nursing and Health Studies William Scott Green Undergraduate Education Charles Eckman Dean and University Librarian Rebecca MacMillan Fox Division of Continuing and International Education

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PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION STEERING COMMITTEE HONOR A RY CO-CH A IRS

Phillip Frost Patricia Frost FU N DR A ISING CH A IR

Jorge M. Pérez CH A IR

Sergio M. Gonzalez V ICE CH A IRS

R ebecca MacMill an Fox Jacqueline R. Menendez Patricia A. Whitely M EM BERS

Donna A. Arbide Shelton G. Berg Rudy Fernandez R icardo Hall Felicia Knaul Daniel a Lorenzo Larry Marbert Nerissa Morris Tomás A. Salerno Aileen M. Ugalde

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JULIO FRENK A fourth-generation physician whose paternal grandparents fled Germany in the early 1930s to build a new life in Mexico, Julio Frenk catalyzed his deep gratitude for the kindness of strangers into a lifelong mission to improve the health, education, and well-being of people around the world.

developing world. He also served as executive director in charge of Evidence and Information for Policy at the World Health Organization and as senior fellow in the global health program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among other leadership positions.

Dr. Frenk, a noted leader in global health and a renowned scholar, became the sixth president of the University of Miami on August 16, 2015. He also holds an academic appointment as Professor of Public Health Sciences at the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine.

Dr. Frenk holds a medical degree from the National University of Mexico, as well as a master of public health and a joint Ph.D. in Medical Care Organization and in Sociology from the University of Michigan. He has received honorary degrees from six universities.

Prior to joining the University of Miami, he was the dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the T & G Angelopoulos Professor of Public Health and International Development, a joint appointment with the Kennedy School of Government.

In addition to his scholarly works, which include more than 150 articles in academic journals, as well as many books and book chapters, he has written two best-selling novels for youngsters explaining the functions of the human body.

Julio Frenk served as the Minister of Health of Mexico from 2000 to 2006. There he pursued an ambitious agenda to reform the nation’s health system and introduced a program of comprehensive universal coverage, known as Seguro Popular, which expanded access to health care for more than 55 million previously uninsured Mexicans.

He was the founding director-general of the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico, one of the leading institutions of its kind in the

He is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Medicine, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Medicine of Mexico, and is on the board of the United Nations Foundation. In 2008, he was a recipient of the Clinton Global Citizen Award for changing “the way practitioners and policy makers across the world think about health.”

President Frenk was born in Mexico City in December of 1953. He is married to Dr. Felicia Knaul, a social-sector economist, and has four children.