Subject Matter Experts

Dr. Wayne A. I. Frederick was appointed the seventeenth president of Howard University in 2014. He previously served as provost and chief academic officer.  Most recently, the Howard University Board of Trustees selected Dr. Frederick to serve as the distinguished Charles R. Drew Profesor of Surgery. 

Dr. Frederick has advanced Howard University's commitment to student opportunity, academic innovation, public service, and fiscal stability. He has overseen a series of reform efforts, including the expansion of academic offerings, establishing innovative programs to support student success and the modernization of university facilities. 

Dr. Frederick received his B.S and M.D. from Howard University.  Following his post-doctoral research and surgical oncology fellowships at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Dr. Frederick began his academic career as associate director of the cancer center at the University of Connecticut. Upon his return to Howard University, his academic positions included associate dean in the College of Medicine, division chief in the Department of Surgery, director of the Cancer Center and deputy provost for Health Sciences. He also earned a Master of Business Administration from Howard University’s School of Business in 2011.

Dr. Frederick is the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, abstracts, and editorials and is a widely recognized expert on disparities in healthcare and medical education. His medical research focuses on narrowing racial, ethnic and gender disparities in cancer-care outcomes, especially pertaining to gastrointestinal cancers. 

Dr. Frederick was honored with the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Humana Inc. He is a member of surgical and medical associations including the American Surgical Association and the American College of Surgeons. 

In 2017, he was named “Washingtonian of the Year” by Washingtonian magazine and in 2015 was named “Male President of the Year” by HBCU Digest. 

"Excellence in Truth and Service is not merely a commitment. Instead, we hope it becomes a binding contract, a mission, for students, staff, and faculty alike to carry out in their future academic, career, and personal endeavors."

Dean Hugh E. Mighty MD, MBA, FACOG, received his Bachelor of Science degree from Georgetown University in Washington, DC, and his MD degree from the University of Maryland in Baltimore, Maryland. He completed a residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Maryland Medical Center, after which he practiced for three years in an underserved area of Baltimore on behalf of the National Health Service Corp. 

Dean Mighty returned to the University of Maryland, where he completed fellowships in Maternal-Fetal Medicine (University of Maryland Medical Center), and Critical Care (University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center) and was subsequently boarded in Critical Care Obstetrics.

After fellowship training, Dean Mighty served in multiple faculty roles including director of Critical Care Obstetrics at UTMB Galveston and at the University of Maryland Medical Center. In 2000, he was appointed as Interim Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Maryland and was appointed Chairman in 2002. As chairman of the department, he reinstated the fellowship program in Maternal-Fetal-Medicine, trained and mentored over 200 residents and fellows, and recruited both clinical and basic science faculty while rebuilt a financially challenged department.

Since 2001, Dean Mighty has also served in public leadership roles requiring collaborative work with state and federal agencies and legislators to foster improved health care programs and public policy changes for the underserved or those with poor access. From 2001 to 2005 he served as Chairman of the State Commission on Infant Mortality Prevention for the state of Maryland.  He also developed innovative programs such as a statewide telemedicine program to bring high risk obstetrical services to pregnant women in rural areas of Maryland, as well as the Tamar’s Children program that deferred sentences for pregnant women who had minor offenses in exchange for development of job and parenting skills.

In 2010, he accepted the position of Vice Chancellor of Clinical Affairs at the LSU health Sciences Center – Shreveport. In his role as the Vice Chancellor of Clinical Affairs for the LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport he guided the financial and strategic direction of the higher education and hospital enterprise.

Dean Mighty joined Howard University’s College of Medicine in 2015 as the Dean of the College of Medicine and Vice President of Clinical Affairs.  Dean Mighty oversees the College of Medicine’s academic programs and provide oversight for the administrative and financial operation of the College of Medicine.  Dean Mighty also serves as Vice President of Clinical Affairs, having oversight of the relationship between the academic enterprise and the hospital and responsibility for the development and direction of the Faculty Practice Plan.  He is a Professor on the faculty in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology with a specialty in Maternal Fetal Medicine.  

Dean Mighty was appointed to the D.C. Mayor’s Commission on Healthcare Systems’ Transformation and the District of Columbia’s Commission on Health Equity.  Dean Mighty has also been recognized by the Washington Business Journal as a 2020 Minority Business Leader. Dean Mighty brings to Howard University a passion for working to create lasting positive change at both institutional and community levels.

Dr. Carla Williams received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Howard University. She is currently Associate Professor of Medicine and Public Health and Interim Director of the Howard University Cancer Center. Her work centers around understanding and reducing cancer-related health disparities. Her research activities emphasize engaging communities that have not been adequately represented in research. Dr. Williams works with community health leaders to promote individual adoption of healthy lifestyle behaviors as well as population-level change in the environment, health policies, and health systems. Since 2010, Dr. Williams’ collaborative research efforts have resulted in the expansion of her role to function as an Executive Scientist. In this capacity, she helps to build research teams within and across institutions to promote collaborative research. She has led the development of a regional symposia to equip scientists and community health advocates with the skills to maximize the impact of collaborative research. In her teaching roles, Dr. Williams has developed new training paradigms to enhance students understanding and utilization of evidence-based practice. She has also incorporated the use of reflective exercises to promote learning synthesis and integration. Most recently, she has worked to develop a combined didactic and practice-based course that builds skills for community engagement as a key discipline in public health, health care research, and health policy.