Nashville, TN – Meharry Medical College proudly welcomes José E. Rodríguez, MD, FAAFP, as the new Chair and tenured full professor of the Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Previously, he served as Associate Vice President for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the University of Utah Health and was a tenured professor in the Department of Family and Preventive Medicine.
“Dr. José Rodríguez brings a rare combination of heart, scholarship, and leadership to Meharry Medical College School of Medicine,” said Dean Sonja Harris-Haywood, M.D., MS, MA. His life’s work, championing equity, amplifying underrepresented voices, and expanding access to compassionate care, embodies the very mission that guides our institution. We are honored to welcome him as professor and Chair of Family and Community Medicine and look forward to the impact his vision and expertise will have on our students, our faculty, and the communities we serve.”
A nationally recognized leader in health equity, Dr. Rodríguez has built a distinguished career advancing access, amplifying underrepresented voices, and reshaping academic medicine to better serve communities that need it most. His primary area of scholarship has been in the realm of equity, diversity, and inclusion, specifically focusing on underrepresented minority faculty in academic medicine.
Dr. Rodríguez is the president of the Family Physicians Inquiries Network, an organization dedicated to teaching residents and faculty how to critically appraise the literature and answer clinical questions with the best available evidence.
From founding the Center for Underrepresented Minorities in Academic Medicine at Florida State University to directing the Leadership through Scholarship Fellowship, Dr. Rodríguez has mentored a generation of diverse family medicine faculty nationwide. His scholarship, editorial leadership, and recent work with the National Academy of Medicine reflect his unwavering commitment to dismantling systemic barriers in healthcare.
Dr. Rodríguez’s Personal Quote: “My goal in family medicine is simple: to listen, to care, and to walk with you through every stage of life, because your health and peace of mind matter most.”
Medical School: Cornell University Medical College
Residency: Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine
