The Harrison McCrea Dickson, MD President’s Distinguished Professorship

The Professorship was established in 2015 through the trust of Harrison McCrea Dickson, MD (1925–2015) of the Perelman School of Medicine Class of 1958. Dr. Dickson made the gift to honor the three generations of the Dickson family who graduated from the Perelman School of Medicine: he followed in the tradition of his father, John McCrea Dickson, MD of the Class of 1912, and grandfather, John Russell Dickson, MD of the Class of 1880. Gifts from Dr. Harrison Dickson’s trust have created professorships in each of their names and named the Dickson Family Center for Student Life within the Jordan Medical Education Center at the Perelman School of Medicine.

As a young man, Dr. Harrison Dickson served during World War II with the medical battalion of the 84th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army. He participated in the Battle of the Bulge and was decorated with three Bronze Stars.

Upon his return from the War, Dr. Dickson attended Gettysburg College. He then taught and did research in biology at Brown University. After earning his medical degree at the Perelman School, Dr. Dickson interned at Lankenau Hospital and performed a surgical residency with the Mayo Clinic. He practiced in Chambersburg, PA, for seven years and then served as Deputy Chief Surgeon for Project Hope, the peace-time hospital ship that offered medical services and training to developing nations. He also was a medical officer in the U.S. Coast Guard in New London, CT, Kodiak, AK, and Cape May, NJ.

President’s Distinguished Professorships are awarded to eminent faculty members with research and teaching expertise in areas identified by the President of the University as high priorities. The creation of President’s Distinguished Professorships at the Perelman School of Medicine has been supported by the challenge gift of Penn University Trustees and Penn Medicine Board members George A. Weiss and Richard W. Vague.

Current Chairholder

Elizabeth Howell, MD, MPP

Elizabeth Howell, MD, MPP, is Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Perelman School of Medicine. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Howell received an MPP in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and completed her residency training at Cornell Medical Center. Dr. Howell also completed a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholars fellowship at Yale University.

Dr. Howell’s academic focus includes the study of racial and ethnic inequities in maternal and child health, postpartum depression, and maternal and infant morbidity and mortality. Her research, which is recognized for shaping national policy, includes mapping strategies to reduce these disparities and the persistent gaps in maternal and infant mortality and morbidity among racial and ethnic groups. Dr. Howell has served on several national committees including the Institute of Medicine, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, The Joint Commission, and the National Quality Forum. She has published in top tier journals including the Journal of the American Medical Association. Dr. Howell was elected to the National Academy of Medicine, one of the highest honors in health and medicine, in 2022.