Liz Magill, UVA’s executive vice president and provost, highlighted Kibbe’s leadership skills. “Dr. Kibbe’s track record demonstrates that she will not only be an exceptional leader for UVA’s School of Medicine; she will be a standout University leader, joining the 11 other deans in building our excellence across all of our academic missions,” she said.
Kibbe succeeds Dr. David S. Wilkes, who has served in the role for the past six years. During his tenure as dean, Wilkes led a renaissance in the research enterprise, bolstered educational offerings and fostered an environment where collaboration and innovation thrived.
UVA President Jim Ryan welcomed Kibbe to the University and expressed his gratitude to the search committee that found her.
“I am delighted that the search committee has selected Dr. Melina Kibbe, an experienced and visionary clinician, educator, leader and researcher, to lead the School of Medicine and serve as UVA Health’s chief health affairs officer,” he said. “My thanks go to co-chairs Dr. Karen Johnston and Dr. Reid Adams, along with the full committee, for their work in making this outstanding selection for UVA. We are excited to build on the momentum generated by David Wilkes’s leadership as the school continues to pursue its mission of excellence in education, research and patient care.”
A native of California, Kibbe graduated from the University of Chicago College of Biological Sciences in 1990 and received her M.D. from UC’s Pritzker School of Medicine in 1994. She completed her internship, residency and research fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and her vascular surgery fellowship at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
Prior to joining UNC, Kibbe served as the vice chair of research at Northwestern University’s Department of Surgery and as deputy director of the Simpson Querrey Institute for BioNanotechnology.
“I am excited to come to UVA,” Kibbe said. “I look forward to working with all of the talented people at the UVA School of Medicine and our partners across the University and in the community to build on UVA’s outstanding foundation of world-class patient care, research and education.”