Tristan Wood
Florida State University College of Medicine Dean John Fogarty will retire this Summer, according to internal communications obtained by Florida Politics.
Fogarty announced his upcoming retirement in an internal email to FSU employees on Nov. 15, 2021.
Florida Politics obtained the email from an FSU employee. FSU spokesperson Amy Farnum-Patronis confirmed the email’s authenticity. The college also published an article in mid-December mentioning his retirement in which Fogarty reflected on his time with the university.
In the email, Fogarty said he has decided to retire after 13 years with the college to enjoy more time with his family.
“This has been an amazing experience for me here at FSU, and I am blessed to have worked with so many wonderful staff, faculty, students and community members who made this job a joy,” he said in the email.
Fogarty, who turned 72 last September, said he originally planned to retire in 2021, but stayed on for another year because of issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and “some lingering LCME issues”.
LCME stands for Liaison Committee on Medical Education, an accrediting body of medical education programs that lead to medical doctor degrees. FSU’s medical school received a warning from the LCME in late 2019, according to reporting from the News Service of Florida.
Other programs in the college have also faced accreditation issues. The college’s Physician’s Assistant program is currently on accreditation probation by the ARC-PA, according to the accrediting body’s website.
During his tenure, Fogarty became one of the longest-serving medical school deans in the country. According to a statement from FSU, about 95% of the 155 medical programs in the U.S. changed deans at least once during his 13 years with the college.
Fogarty’s decision to retire comes as staffing shakeups have occurred across FSU’s administration since Richard McCullough became university president last August. The university is replacing its Provost and its Director of Athletics this month.
In the email, Fogarty said the university has already reached out to identify a national search firm to lead a national search for his replacement. He said he will stay on as dean until his replacement is named. He plans on staying on at least through July.
“I am confident in the leadership of our new President and his team, and I am excited about all the new and exciting initiatives underway that will make the COM even stronger going forward,” he said. “I know this is a very attractive medical school dean position and I am confident that there will be many highly qualified internal and external candidates who would love to take on this incredible role.”
