Dr. Richard Grant has the honor of holding the position as the nation’s first endowed chair devoted to diversity of the faculty.

University Hospitals created the Edgar B. Jackson Jr., M.D. Endowed Chair for Diversity in 2000 to honor Jackson, an African-American physician. Last year, the hospital tapped Dr. Grant for the position.

Before joining the UH system, Dr. Grant served 13 years as chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery in the College of Medicine at Howard University in Washington, D.C. He is one of a select few African-American orthopaedic surgeons in the country and the first to become a full-time faculty member at UH.

Dr. Jackson, the endowed chair namesake, retired UH physician and longtime community advocate for the poor, was instrumental in bringing Dr. Grant to Cleveland. Minority physicians are difficult to recruit nationally, and UH is betting on Dr. Grant to help provide the draw it needs to boost its staff.

“The one thing that really made us want to pursue Richard for this position was his reputation in leading a national effort to bring more African-Americans into the medical field, particularly in relation to orthopaedics and other subspecialties,” Dr. Jackson said.

University Hospitals, one of the leading orthopaedic teaching hospitals in the country, is committed to improving the number of underrepresented minority medical students pursuing careers in orthopaedic medicine.

The Timothy L. Stephens Jr., MD, Orthopaedic Clerkship and Fellowship program prepares highly qualified candidates for competitive orthopaedic residency programs and musculoskeletal scientist faculty appointments and encourages an increase in the number of African-American, Latino and Native American medical students pursuing a career in specialized medicine.

Each year, three second-year medical students will be selected to participate in a two-month summer clerkship offering intensive clinical and research experience. Upon completion of the clerkship, one participant will be identified as a candidate for a year-long orthopaedics fellowship program. Learn more