Zweig Named Dean of MU School of Medicine

After serving as interim dean since April 2019, Steven Zweig has been named dean of the University of Missouri School of Medicine. His appointment is effective April 1, 2020.

“Since joining the MU School of Medicine faculty in 1984, Dr. Zweig has proven himself to be a committed and incredibly passionate leader,” said Latha Ramchand, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. “He is a strong advocate for the School of Medicine on our campus, and most recently, his leadership during our response to the pandemic has been crucial. I am pleased to know that we can continue to lean on him as our university looks toward the future and our continued focus on teaching, research and clinical care.”

Prior to serving as interim dean, Zweig served as chair of the Department of Family and Community Medicine from 2008 to 2019. Zweig is the former director of the MU Interdisciplinary Center on Aging, past president of the national Association of Departments of Family Medicine and has been the lead researcher on several grants, receiving more than $7 million in external funding from several sources, including the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the American Association of Medical Colleges and Pew Charitable Trusts.

“Dr. Zweig is a leader in his field as well as to the tremendously talented faculty in our School of Medicine. I am very fortunate to arrive to Columbia with such dedicated leadership in place at both the medical school as well as MU Health Care,” said Richard Barohn, incoming executive vice chancellor for Health Affairs. “Together, we are aligned to advance health care, precision health and medical education in Missouri.”

In addition to his responsibilities as dean, Zweig is a family physician with additional certifications in geriatric medicine and hospice and palliative medicine. In this role, he will assume the Hugh E. and Sarah D. Stephenson deanship.

“Our mission of exemplary education, research and patient-centered care is more important than ever before,” Zweig said. “I am honored to continue leading the great faculty, staff and students at our medical school, and working with our clinical partners at MU Health Care, our colleagues on campus and beyond. We have made significant strides in the last year, but we have many new challenges ahead of us. I look forward to overcoming these challenges together.”

In the past year, Zweig has helped lead efforts to improve the university’s standing as a research-focused institution. He has engaged with the health system and campus leadership to create an academic health system strategic plan. Working together with department chairs and key leaders, he has initiated the first School of Medicine strategic plan for research.

A key tenet of his first year as dean has been the engagement of students, staff and faculty. He has advocated for clinician well-being and has helped the school attract a diverse class of learners. He is committed to an environment of financial and operational transparency.

“During these challenging times, we are fortunate to have faculty such as Dr. Zweig who are willing to take on these roles,” Ramchand said. “As interim dean, Dr. Zweig has made some tough decisions, and his service to the university is a testimony to his commitment to serve the health care needs of Missouri citizens. I’m grateful that he is now a permanent member of our leadership team at MU.”

Zweig graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University and attended medical school and completed residency training in family medicine at MU. He then completed a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Fellowship in Academic Family Practice, receiving a Master of Science in Public Health degree.

This story originally appeared in Mizzou News on April 23, 2020.