We are thrilled to announce the appointment of Prithvi S. Sankar, M.D. to the position of Assistant Dean for Student Affairs and Residency Planning in the Undergraduate Medical Education Academic Programs Office at the Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM). Dr. Sankar is a Professor of Ophthalmology and clinician at the Scheie Eye Institute specializing in glaucoma, and is the Director and Vice Chair of Medical Student Education for his department. In 2019, Dr. Sankar was appointed to the role of Senior Advisor to the Graduating Class, and he has demonstrated tremendous effort and success in supporting our students in the Match during the COVID-19 pandemic. This appointment to Assistant Dean is much deserved. He is an invaluable member of the Undergraduate Medical Education Leadership Team (UMELT), and we welcome him to this role with true excitement.

Dr. Sankar earned his bachelor’s and medical degrees from the University of Virginia, trained at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network for internship, and completed residency at the University of Pittsburgh Health Center. After finishing a Glaucoma Clinical Fellowship at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, he joined the faculty of the Scheie Eye Institute and University of Pennsylvania in 2001.

Dr. Sankar has numerous national roles including being the Past President of the Directors of Medical Student Education in the Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology, is an active member of the Minorities in Ophthalmology Mentoring Programs, and is a member of the SFMatch Oversight committee. His more than 20 years of scholarly experience in clinical glaucoma research has a focus on African American and Black populations. He is the recipient of several prestigious PSOM awards, including the Penn Pearls Teaching Award, induction into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Society, and the Leonard Tow Gold Humanism Award. He received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Clinical Teaching at an Affiliated Hospital in 2007, was inducted into the Academy of Master Clinicians in 2018, and received the Medical Student Government Clinical Teaching Award in 2019. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) and in 2018 received the AAO Senior Achievement Award. In 2020 he received the AAO Secretariat Award, which recognizes special contributions to the Academy outside of the current Achievement Awards program.

In his role as Director of Medical Student Education for the Department of Ophthalmology, he teaches medical students in every year of their education, which he loves. In his position as Assistant Dean for Student Affairs and Residency Planning, Dr. Sankar will join the student affairs team in ensuring all our students are supported, and that the graduating class is well prepared for post-graduation pursuits, including residency. He will continue to serve in his role as Advisory Dean, helping students realize their excellence in any field, and will be especially valuable in onboarding and mentoring new and current Advisory Deans.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Sankar in his new role, and in celebrating his many years of commitment to medical student education at PSOM!

Suzi Rose, MD, MSEd, Senior Vice Dean for Medical Education

DaCarla Albright, MD, Associate Dean for Student Affairs and Wellness