Lawrence Harkless, DPM
Interim Dean, School of Podiatric Medicine
Department of Surgery
Office of Health Affairs, UTRGV SOM
Email:
Lawrence.Harkless@utrgv.edu
Dr. Harkless is the interim dean for the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) School of Podiatry and professor of surgery for the UTRGV School of Medicine. In this role, his charge is to obtain approval from state, regional, and professional accrediting bodies to admit an inaugural class, fall of 2022.
He is also the Western University Health Sciences College of Podiatric Medicine, Founding Dean Emeritus and Professor Emeritus from Pomona, California. He is an internationally distinguished clinical educator, investigator, lecturer, author, and political scholar.
Dr. Harkless relocated to Western University following a remarkable 30-year career at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UTHSCSA). He served with distinction as a professor of Orthopedics and division chief of Podiatric Medicine, Surgery ,and residency program director, educating thousands of students, residents, and fellows providing high quality health care service to the greater San Antonio community. While at UTHSCSA he received the Presidential Excellence in Teaching Award 1998, the Outstanding Educator American Diabetes Association 2001 and was chairman for the Texas Diabetes Council from 2001-2007 appointed by Governor Rick Perry.
His pioneering leadership led to the establishment of podiatric medical services in San Bernardino and Riverside County Hospitals meeting the needs of the underserved community through improved access to high quality care and prevention of complications of diabetes and pathology associated aging and arthritis.
His research has been interprofessional and collaborative in nature and he has built on a team approach to further scientific discovery.
He has impacted the entire arena of limb preservation in Diabetes and wound healing, including the development and validation of wound and risk stratification models. The risk and wound classification systems have provided the taxonomy which allows clinicians to communicate worldwide improving patient centered outcomes and reducing the impact of health care costs.
