Health Sciences South Carolina (HSSC), a collaborative that links the state's research universities and largest health systems to advance the state's economy and improve public health through research, has selected Dr. Jay Moskowitz to be its first president. Moskowitz, an acknowledged national leader in biomedical research with more than 35 years in academic medicine and research, was chosen after a year-long search for an individual with the experience necessary to propel the statewide research collaborative to national prominence. He officially began his new role September. 24, 2007.
HSSC Chairman and Greenville Health System CEO and President Mike Riordan, said Moskowitz is the perfect person to build upon HSSC’s vision and put in place strategies and infrastructure necessary for continued success.
"Since its inception in April 2004, HSSC has aspired to achieve great things on behalf of the people of South Carolina," Riordan said. "We have been fortunate to have the support of the General Assembly, The Duke Endowment, and many people within our own organizations and communities. It is an honor to have an individual of Dr. Moskowitz's experience, talent, and national reputation join HSSC as our first president. We have accomplished many great things in a short time, and with Dr. Moskowitz's leadership and results-oriented attitude, rest assured more great things will be accomplished."
Moskowitz brings an extensive and impressive resume to South Carolina. He began his career at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), rising to the position of principal deputy director and deputy director for Science Policy and Technology Transfer, Office of the Director.
In 1989, he was selected as the founding director of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. In 1995, he was recruited by Wake Forest University School of Medicine, where he served as senior associate dean for Science and Technology, playing an instrumental role in the enhancement of their research mission and the development of Wake Forest's Downtown Research Park.
Currently, Moskowitz is associate vice president for Health Sciences Research, Pennsylvania State University; vice dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Penn State College of Medicine; and chief scientific officer, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
University of South Carolina President Andrew Sorensen, HSSC vice chair, said Moskowitz will be a tremendous resource for HSSC on many levels. "Throughout his career in academic research and at the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Moskowitz has demonstrated a keen ability not only to identify research with economic potential but also to bring together stakeholders to support, participate in and help take those results out of the labs into the real world," he said. "We look forward to his leadership of Health Sciences South Carolina (HSSC) and to working with him to bring HSSC's collaborative research to fruition so it will have a lasting impact on the health and wellness of our citizens."
Moskowitz will hold a tenured faculty appointment within the Arnold School of Public Health. He also will have faculty appointments with Clemson University and the Medical University of South Carolina. His primary office will be in Columbia.
Moskowitz attributes the vision of HSSC's Board of Directors, the high quality of South Carolina's universities and health systems, and the commitment of the General Assembly as factors in his accepting the position with HSSC.
"I am thoroughly impressed with the leadership across these entities and what HSSC has accomplished to date," he said. "This is a critical moment in the state's history in the translation of health research to healthcare and economic growth. Both talent and passion exists within all of the stakeholders. Everything is aligned for success. I am looking forward to being part of this creative health initiative."
National response to HSSC's appointment of Dr. Moskowitz has been overwhelmingly positive. Dr. Darrell G. Kirch, president of the Association of American Medical Colleges and a colleague of Moskowitz's at NIH and Penn State, said, "Having worked with Dr. Moskowitz for more than 20 years, I have seen him become one of the acknowledged leaders in American biomedical research. His exceptional vision and limitless energy is the perfect match for the innovative aspirations of Health Sciences South Carolina. The state of South Carolina is creating a new model of research collaboration, and Dr. Moskowitz is the perfect individual to shape that model."
Dr. Bernadine Healy, health editor for US News & World Report, said, "Dr. Moskowitz was the deputy director while I was director of the National Institutes of Health. He is terrific at every level: a great leader, a man of strategic vision and high integrity. With his experience at the NIH and in academic medicine, he is the perfect person to lead the effort in South Carolina."