Shekar Kurpad Inaugurated as MCW’s Seventh President

Shekar Kurpad, MD, PhD, FEL ‘01, was formally inaugurated as the seventh President of the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) on September 17.

The MCW Orchestra – made up of learners, faculty, and staff – opened the event with processional music that ushered in the evening’s dignitaries. Hundreds of learners, faculty, staff, community members, healthcare leaders, and institutional partners gathered at the Marcus Performing Arts Center to celebrate Dr. Kurpad and mark the beginning of MCW’s new chapter.

“Dr. Kurpad was selected following a comprehensive national search and brings a proven record of leadership, innovation and impact,” says John Donofrio, chairman of MCW’s Board of Trustees. “He is uniquely positioned to guide MCW forward, building on our strong foundation, while advancing academic medicine through our patient care, research, education, and community engagement missions.”

A Career Rooted at MCW

Dr. Kurpad, who began his tenure as president and CEO on July 1, has ties to MCW that go back more than two and a half decades. He first arrived in Milwaukee as a spinal surgery fellow in 2001. Over the years, he built an impressive career as a neurosurgeon, neuroscientist, and academic health leader.

Internationally recognized for his pioneering work in spinal cord injury, Dr. Kurpad is known for his leadership in major clinical trials and the development of imaging biomarkers. In the clinic, he has treated more than 15,000 patients with spinal and cranial disorders. He has authored more than 150 research papers and mentored nearly 100 medical and graduate students, doctoral candidates, and postdoctoral researchers.

In 2022, he became the founding director of the Wisconsin Institute of NeuroScience, a first-of-its-kind statewide neuroscience enterprise that integrates more than 600 clinicians and scientists across MCW, Froedtert ThedaCare, Children’s Wisconsin, and Zablocki VA Medical Center.

Dr. Kurpad has held numerous leadership positions at MCW, including most recently as the senior associate dean for neuroscience in the School of Medicine. In that role, he provided enterprise oversight of MCW’s neuroscience strategy across basic, translational, and clinical domains.

A Vision Built on Experience

Dr. Kurpad’s deep knowledge of MCW provides a strong foundation as he looks to build on the institution’s strengths and shape its future.

“You have known this institution as a distinguished faculty member and academic leader, and you are putting forth a bold vision,” says Cheryl Maurana, PhD, provost of MCW, who spoke after a national anthem performance by Chordae Harmonae, MCW’s a capella group. “What begins today is a shared undertaking between you and the MCW community to steward MCW together toward a transformative future.”

Local and national leaders joined the celebration, including the Mayor of Wauwatosa Dennis McBride; President of the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities Eric Fulcomer, PhD; President of MCW/Marquette Alumni Association Mark Bosbous, MD ‘05, GME ’11; and President of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation Greg Wesely. Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers along with community partners, health systems leaders, and MCW’s deans and student body presidents shared video messages.

“An inauguration is a moment to look forward,” says Dr. Bosbous. “It’s a moment to consider where MCW is going, what we can become, and the impact we can have in the years ahead. As you have said, MCW has tremendous potential and we are just getting started.”

The event also included messages from friends and mentors who have known Dr. Kurpad throughout his life.

“Having known Shekar for more than four decades, I can say with complete confidence that MCW has not only chosen an outstanding leader, but also an extraordinary human being,” says Raghu Adiga, MD, who went to medical school with Dr. Kurpad and is now the CEO of Liberty Market and senior vice president of the Kansas City Division at the University of Kansas Health System. “Your accomplishments earned you this opportunity, but it’s your character, your integrity, and your commitment to others that will define your presidency.”

MCW’s Journey to Destination Health

To symbolically assume the role of president, Dr. Kurpad received the Presidential Mace and Presidential Medallion from John Raymond, MD, sixth president and CEO of MCW. Both items represent the authority and responsibility of the presidency, as well as the knowledge, truth, and strength of MCW.

As MCW’s president and CEO, Dr. Kurpad shared his visions and plans for MCW’s future, which he called “Our Journey to Destination Health.”

For Dr. Kurpad, this journey is composed of four key pieces: Discover, Teach, Care, and Partner.

“We are a place where research translates into better patient care,” he says. “We are a place where future physicians, pharmacists, scientists, and public health leaders are trained to do, but also to think on how care can be improved. We are a place where clinical care directly generates positive patient outcomes. And we are a place where we partner with our health system partners and local communities to promote health and improve health outcomes.”

He then brought that vision to life by sharing examples of how MCW’s work can change a patient’s life.

“Why?” he asks. “Because when a school-age child is diagnosed with a rare genetic disease, her family finally finds answers because our scientists have spent years building the tools to find them. At every stage of life, and for every kind of need, MCW is where they will come. And this is what we were always meant to be.”

Four Priorities for MCW’s Future

To exemplify the first pillar of Destination Health – “Discover,” Dr. Kurpad highlighted the groundbreaking research and innovation already underway at MCW.

MCW scientists have created precision medicine technologies to treat neurological tremors and cancer, engineered devices to improve radiation treatment, and developed DNA-based tests to replace invasive procedures for children whose bodies reject a heart transplant.

Dr. Kurpad says MCW will build on this record of innovation, investing significantly in the growth of a thriving ecosystem of biotechnology ventures, advanced imaging and medical technology solutions.

“We will translate research into practical tools, diagnostics, therapies, and treatments,” he says.

For the “Teach” pillar, Dr. Kurpad emphasized MCW’s role in shaping the next generation of health leaders.

“A true destination for health does not simply deliver care,” says Dr. Kurpad. “It develops the people who will define the future of care. That future begins with education. Education has always been at the heart of MCW.”

As MCW pursues this vision, Dr. Kurpad also emphasized the importance of staying connected to the local community and the alumni, partners and donors who help make that work possible.

“Establishing a destination for health should also reach where the folks we serve live — neighborhoods, grade schools, workplaces and community centers,” says Dr. Kurpad. “This is why community engagement is central to our mission.”

Dr. Kurpad concluded his inaugural address by emphasizing collaboration as essential to achieving Destination Health.

“I firmly believe if we collectively accomplish these individual goals, we will evolve to a destination built on discovery, dedicated to care, powered by education, and strengthened by community partnerships,” says Dr. Kurpad. “We will achieve our one shared purpose – improving health for all.”