Chairs and Directors (UTRGV School of Medicine)

Chairs and Directors

Chairs

Daniel Albo, MD: Chair, Department of Surgery; (956) 296-1449; Daniel.Albo@utrgv.edu

Daniel Albo, MD

Daniel Albo, MD
Chair, Department of Surgery
Surgery
Email: Daniel.Albo@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1449

Daniel Albo, MD, joined the UTRGV School of Medicine team in March 2021 and currently serves as the Department Chair and Professor in the Department of Surgery. In this capacity, he will help lead and develop all clinical, educational, and research programs for UTRGV.

Dr. Albo earned his medical degree at the University of the Republic, Uruguay, in 1991. He completed his General Surgery residency and obtained a PhD degree in Molecular Pathobiology at Drexel University in Philadelphia in 2000. He later completed a Surgical Oncology fellowship at the UTMD Anderson Cancer Center in 2002 before joining the Medical College of Georgia, where he helped develop a Surgical Oncology program and a multidisciplinary MD/PhD program in Oncology. He then moved to the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, in 2004.

Dr. Albo has held leadership roles in several academic surgical societies, including being the President for the Association for Academic Surgery. His leadership has been influential in the transformation of the AAS into one of the leading academic surgical societies in the world.

Dr. Albo is a dedicated surgical educator. He has been awarded several prestigious teaching awards, including the Golden Stethoscope, Golden Apple, and the Gene A. Guinn Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award.

Dr. Albo has proudly served in the medical field for more than 21 years. He is a nationally and internationally renowned Surgical Oncologist (Cancer Surgeon) at UT Health RGV and is dedicated to providing the highest quality care and medical education to the RGV community.

Subhash Chauhan, PhD: Chair, Department of Immunology and Microbiology; Subhash.Chauhan@utrgv.edu

Subhash Chauhan, PhD

Subhash Chauhan, PhD
Chair, Department of Immunology and Microbiology
Immunology and Microbiology
Office number
Email: Subhash.Chauhan@utrgv.edu

Subhash Chauhan, PhD, serves as Chair of the Department of Immunology and Microbiology at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine.

Dr. Chauhan earned his PhD from the Central Drug Research Institute in Lucknow, India. He later joined the University of Tennessee Health Science Center faculty, where he served as a professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences in the College of Pharmacy and Cancer Research Center.

Dr. Chauhan is an accomplished researcher with 24 years of experience in cancer immunology research, and he has garnered several high-award grants from the National Institutes of Health. He has currently been appointed as Director of the South Texas Center of Excellence in Cancer Research at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Diana Chapa, MD: Interim Chair, Department of Psychiatry; Diana.Chapa@utrgv.edu

Diana Chapa, MD

Diana Chapa, MD
Interim Chair, Department of Psychiatry
Psychiatry
Email: Diana.Chapa@utrgv.edu

Diana Chapa, MD, serves as Assistant Professor of Medicine and Interim Chair for the Department of Psychiatry at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Chapa is an RGV native who has proudly returned to her hometown to help transform health care in the community. She earned her medical degree at the University of Wisconsin Medical School in 1995, and she completed her Psychiatry internship and residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals from 1995 to 1998. She then trained at the same institution for a Child and Adolescent Fellowship from 1998 to 2000.

Dr. Chapa is double board certified in Psychiatry and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She shares her medical expertise as an assistant professor of Psychiatry at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

With her return to the RGV, Dr. Chapa’s goal is to make a positive impact on our community through her resident teachings and supervision.

Michael Dobbs, MD, MHCM: Chair, Department of Neurology; (956) 296-2006 (Edinburg); Michael.Dobbs@utrgv.edu

Michael Dobbs, MD, MHCM

Michael Dobbs, MD, MHCM
Chair, Department of Neurology
Neurology
Email: Michael.Dobbs@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-2006 (Edinburg)
Phone Alt: (956) 296-3903 (Harlingen)

Michael R. Dobbs, MD, MHCM, is the Chief Medical Officer, Vice Dean for Clinical Affairs, Professor and Chair of Neurology at University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He holds advanced degrees from the University of Kentucky and Harvard. He served with distinction in the US Air Force Medical Corps including an academic appointment at the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. He has authored more than 50 publications including books, book chapters, journal articles, and abstracts. His book Clinical Neurotoxicology—Syndromes, Substances, Environments is a leading text in the field worldwide. He moved to UTRGV from the University of Kentucky in 2019 where he had most recently served as Associate Dean with responsibility for initiatives such as successful establishment of regional four-year medical school campuses. As program director he had led his hospital to become one of the busiest stroke centers in the United States while also building a 34 hospital Stroke Network that continues to grow and bring life-saving treatments to underserved regions in Appalachia.

As Neurology Chair, he is building a department that provides advanced clinical care, education, and research at the new Institute of Neuroscience located in Harlingen, TX. Dr. Dobbs teaches the Mind, Brain, and Behavior module for pre-clinical MS2s and it has been the highest rated module by the students for the last 3 years. He has been an institutional principal investigator on multiple clinical trials and has published original research in stroke outcomes and other topics. In early 2022, Dr. Dobbs was awarded an NIH Research Enhancement Award (R15) grant which will bring national recognition to the UTRGV School of Medicine, expose students to new research opportunities, and strengthen the overall research environment of the institution. In his spare time, he loves to explore the Rio Grande Valley with his family.

Jimmy Gonzales, MD: Interim Chair, Department of Family Medicine; Jimmy.Gonzales@utrgv.edu

Jimmy Gonzales, MD

Jimmy Gonzales, MD
Interim Chair, Department of Family Medicine
Family Medicine
Email: Jimmy.Gonzales@utrgv.edu

Jimmy Gonzales, MD, joined the UTRGV School of Medicine team in 2015 and currently serves as Assistant Professor and Interim Chair for the Department of Family Medicine.

Dr. Jimmy Gonzales earned his medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern. After medical school, he completed a preliminary year in general surgery at Parkland/UT Southwestern.  Dr. Gonzales then went on to complete his family medicine residency at Scott & White/Texas A&M Health Science Center.  After his residency, he completed a Primary Care Sports Medicine Fellowship at Texas Tech University.

Dr. Gonzales is board certified by the American Board of Family Medicine with special qualifications in Sports Medicine. At UT Health RGV, he serves as a board-certified Family Medicine doctor who focuses on providing advanced primary care to children and adults in the RGV.

Dr. Gonzales also serves as Director of Sports Medicine for the UTRGV Family Medicine Residency Program. Additionally, he serves as the team physician for UTRGV Athletics.

Dr. Gonzales is passionate about his roles with UTRGV, and he looks forward to educating new and future family medicine physicians.

Nausheen Jamal, MD: Founding Chair, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery; (956) 296-1426; Nausheen.Jamal@utrgv.edu

Nausheen Jamal, MD

Nausheen Jamal, MD
Founding Chair, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
Email: Nausheen.Jamal@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1426

Dr. Nausheen Jamal is the Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education, Founding Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, and Designated Institutional Official. Dr. Jamal comes to UTRGV from the Lewis Katz School of Medicine where she has served as Associate Professor of Otolaryngology and Director of the residency program. She received her medical degree from Baylor College of Medicine and completed her residency training in Otorhinolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine Affiliated Hospitals in New York. Dr. Jamal specializes in voice, swallowing, and airway disorders and completed her fellowship in Laryngology at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in California.

Robert Nelson, MD: Chair, Department of Pediatrics; (956) 296-1430; Robert.Nelson@utrgv.edu

Robert Nelson, MD

Robert Nelson, MD
Chair, Department of Pediatrics
Pediatrics
Email: Robert.Nelson@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1430

Dr. Robert Nelson Jr. joined the UTRGV School of Medicine team in 2014. He currently serves as Senior Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs, Interim Vice Dean for Educational Affairs, Interim Assistant Dean for Clerkships, and Chair of Pediatrics.

Dr. Nelson earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Washington, and a Master of Science in administrative medicine from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Dr. Nelson has more than 30 years of experience working in graduate medical education, and he is elated to continue preparing the next generation of physicians in the Rio Grande Valley.

Tony Ogburn, MD, FACOG: Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; (956) 296-1543; Tony.Ogburn@utrgv.edu

Tony Ogburn, MD, FACOG

Tony Ogburn, MD, FACOG
Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Obstetrics and Gynecology
Email: Tony.Ogburn@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1543

Dr. Tony Ogburn is a professor and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Ogburn attended medical school at the University of Florida and completed his residency in OB-GYN at the University of California-Irvine. Following his residency, he worked for the Indian Health Service in Gallup, New Mexico, for six years. Throughout his career, he has advocated for improved access to health care for underserved populations. He has volunteered on Indian reservations in the United States and at a maternity hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Dr. Ogburn was previously a professor in the Department of Obstetrics at the University of New Mexico, where he served on the faculty for 18 years before moving to UTRGV in 2015. He is currently a board-certified OB-GYN specialist at UT Health RGV and is devoted to providing accessible, high-quality care to the RGV community.

Ihsan M. Salloum, MD, MPH: Chair, Department of Neuroscience; Ihsan.Salloum@utrgv.edu

Ihsan M. Salloum, MD, MPH

Ihsan M. Salloum, MD, MPH
Chair, Department of Neuroscience
Neuroscience
Email: Ihsan.Salloum@utrgv.edu

Dr. Ihsan M. Salloum is the Sujata G. Krishnan Endowed Chair in Neuroscience, the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long Distinguished Professor in Neuroscience, Founding Chair for the Department of Neuroscience, and Director of the Institute of Neuroscience at UTRGV.

Dr. Salloum received a Doctor of Medicine and Surgery from the University of Bologna and a Master of Public Health from the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health. He completed his psychiatry residency training at the Chicago Medical School - Rosalind Franklin University and an NIH-sponsored Fellowship in Alcohol Research at UPMC’s Department of Psychiatry.

Dr. Salloum’s research has been supported continuously by the NIH for over two decades. He served as a member of the National Institute of Health Scientific Review Group and as an Examiner of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He currently serves on the American Psychiatric Association (APA)’s Workgroup on Research Training. Dr. Salloum is board certified in Psychiatry and Neurology and Addiction Psychiatry and is listed in America’s Most Honored Professionals. He is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the APA, an Honorary Member of the World Psychiatric Association, and serves as President of the International College of Person-centered Medicine.

Before joining the UTRGV School of Medicine, Dr. Salloum served as Chief of the Drug and Alcohol Treatment and Research Division and Director of the Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship Program at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He also served as the Director of Research & Education, and Medical Director of the Addiction Medicine Services for the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Michael Sander, MD: Founding Chair, Department of Orthopedic Surgery; (956) 296-2821; Michael.Sander@utrgv.edu

Michael Sander, MD

Michael Sander, MD
Founding Chair, Department of Orthopedic Surgery
Department of Orthopedic Surgery
Email: Michael.Sander@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-2821

Dr. Michael Sander, a native of Weslaco, is the Founding Chair of the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Sander earned his medical degree with honors from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. For his orthopedic surgery residency, he attended The University of Iowa Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation. He then completed his orthopedic sports fellowship at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. Dr. Sander continued his medical training and obtained board certification from the American Board of Orthopedic Surgery.

Dr. Sander currently serves as a board-certified Orthopedic Surgeon at UT Health RGV. He provides advanced treatment to patients with a variety of orthopedic conditions, and he specializes in helping patients regain mobility and functionality with the goal of long-term success.

Andrew Tsin, PhD: Chair, Department of Molecular Science; (956) 296-1705; Andrew.Tsin@utrgv.edu

Andrew Tsin, PhD

Andrew Tsin, PhD
Chair, Department of Molecular Science
Molecular Science
Email: Andrew.Tsin@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1705

Dr. Andrew Tsin is the Chair of the Department of Molecular Science and the Senior Associate Dean of Research at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Tsin is a graduate of Dalhousie University and has an MS and PhD (Zoology/Physiology) from the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship in the Program in Neuroscience and the Department of Ophthalmology at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. He was appointed an Assistant Professor in 1981 in the Department of Biology at the University of Texas at San Antonio and was promoted to Associate and then full Professor with tenure. He was also appointed Professor of Biochemistry and Ophthalmology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. At the University of Texas at San Antonio, Dr. Tsin also served as Division Director of Life Sciences, Associate Dean of Research, Director of the Center for Research and Training in Sciences, Director of Center for Interdisciplinary Health Research and Associate Vice President of Health Research. Dr. Tsin has published more than 100 peer review articles and his scholarly activity includes biochemistry of the visual cycle and cell biology of angiogenic eye diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. His professional activity also includes development of institutional research capabilities and student/faculty mentoring. Dr. Tsin has received a Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEN award presented by President Obama), a Lifetime Achievement Award by the AAAS (American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world’s largest scientific society) and the Ruth Kirschstein Diversity in Science Award by the American Association for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Dr. Tsin is a Gold Fellow of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology and an elected Fellow of AAAS, Royal Society of Medicine, Royal Society of Biology and the Linnean Society of London. Dr. Tsin has received research supports from the NIH (including two R01 and one R03 grant), NSF, DoD, as well as research grants from different private and public entities.

Leonel Vela, MD, MPH: Chair, Department of Family Medicine, Interim Chair of Population Health and Biostatistics; (956) 296-1534; Leonel.Vela@utrgv.edu

Leonel Vela, MD, MPH

Leonel Vela, MD, MPH
Chair, Department of Family Medicine, Interim Chair of Population Health and Biostatistics
Family Medicine
Email: Leonel.Vela@utrgv.edu
Phone: (956) 296-1534

Dr. Leonel Vela serves as Chair of the Department of Family Medicine and Interim Chair of Population Health and Biostatistics at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Vela, a Pharr native, attended Stanford University for his undergraduate studies. He went on to the Baylor College of Medicine and later attended Harvard University, where he received his master’s degree in public health.

For much of his career, Dr. Vela has focused on community health. He received training at Stanford, Harvard, Baylor, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), among others. He is a leader in medical education and uses his experience to prepare students for the future of health care.

Sarah Williams-Blangero, PhD: Chair, Department of Human Genetics; Sarah.Williams-Blangero@utrgv.edu

Sarah Williams-Blangero, PhD

Sarah Williams-Blangero, PhD
Chair, Department of Human Genetics
Human Genetics
Email: Sarah.Williams-Blangero@utrgv.edu

Sarah Williams-Blangero, PhD, is the Chair of the Department of Human Genetics at the UTRGV School of Medicine.

Dr. Williams-Blangero is a genetic epidemiologist with over 30 years of experience in research on the genetic determinants of differential susceptibility to complex diseases, particularly in minority populations. She received her PhD in Biological Anthropology from Case Western Reserve University in 1987. Dr. Williams-Blangero joined the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research (now the Texas Biomedical Research Institute) as a postdoctoral scientist in the Department of Genetics in 1987. After being promoted through the ranks to the level of Scientist, she was Chair of the Department of Genetics at the Texas Biomedical Research Institute for 15 years and also served for 2 years as the Deputy Director of the Southwest National Primate Research Center that was based at Texas Biomed. She has served as a standing member of two NIH study sections and has served on an ad hoc basis on numerous other review panels. As a Principal Investigator, Dr. Williams-Blangero has generated over $25 million in NIH funding to support her research. A leader in the conduct of human population studies, Dr. Williams-Blangero has developed research sites in Nepal and Brazil that have been active for over 30 years and over 20 years respectively. She has published more than 120 papers in the scientific literature.

Dr. Williams-Blangero was also recruited to be the Founding Director of the South Texas Diabetes and Obesity Institute at UTRGV in 2014.