Following an extensive national search, The Pritzker School of Medicine on Monday announced that Dr. Dayle Davenport has been named Associate Dean for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (HEDI). Dr. Davenport earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Chemistry. She graduated with a medical degree from Harvard Medical School and matched with the University of Chicago in the Emergency Medicine Residency Program. Following residency, Dr. Davenport received an academic appointment in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Rush University Medical Center, where she currently serves as the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion at Rush Medical College.
Dr. Davenport brings a breadth of knowledge and experience in health equity, diversity, and inclusion to Pritzker. In her role as Assistant Dean at Rush, she worked with leaders of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA), Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA), and Rush University Diversity and Inclusion to understand the specific experiences of underrepresented minority students and professionals in medicine. Additionally, Dr. Davenport served as the faculty advisor for the Peck Advisory Group, where she provided support in academic progress, personal growth, and career development for medical students through one-on-one meetings, advising events, and social activities. She has also been the faculty advisor for the Housestaff Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee and the Chicago Minority Medical Student Emergency Medicine program, which promotes underrepresented minorities and LGBTQ rising second-year medical students to careers in academic and community emergency medicine.
Dr. Davenport served as a mentor through other programs at Rush, such as the Rush Women Mentoring Program, the DEI Mentorship Family program, and the Paula Brown Rush Village Mentoring Program, which provides professional development, education, and advocacy for emerging Rush leaders. All of these mentorship efforts have resulted in numerous speaking invitations as well as honors and awards, including the Marcus Martin Scholarship Award, given to faculty members with significant contributions in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the 2022 Rush Excellence in Mentoring award, given yearly to one faculty member who effectively and consistently mentors other faculty, trainees, students, and staff in their professional development and career advancement.
Dr. Davenport actively participated in various committees at Rush, including the Diversity Leadership Council’s subcommittee on Training and Communication, Women’s Wellness Workgroup, and the Medical Staff Diversity Task Force, which assisted with networking, outreach, and advising in the recruitment of underrepresented minority faculty members and identified talent for development and succession planning into senior leadership roles. She has been an active participant and leader in Rush Medical College’s admissions process, serving on the Executive Admissions Committee and the Diversity Workgroup subcommittee. Her committee presence extends to the national level as she is a member of the American College of Emergency Physicians, Section on Minority Affairs and Diversity, the Association of American Medical Colleges Group on Diversity and Inclusion, and the Council of Residency Directors, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.
Dr. Davenport has also been an impactful educator and researcher while at Rush in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion. She has been a popular lecturer in various courses and clinical experiences throughout the curriculum at Rush and has served as a clinician educator to medical students and residents. Dr. Davenport has numerous peer-reviewed publications with a specific focus on gender and racial bias in medical student Standardized Letters of Evaluation as well as on improving the diverse recruitment of residents and faculty in emergency medicine. She has also authored various papers and book chapters on topics related to clinical care and quality improvement initiatives in emergency medicine.
To facilitate a smooth transition from her myriad of roles at Rush, Dr. Davenport will officially join the Pritzker School of Medicine on February 13. Please join us in welcoming Dr. Davenport to Pritzker!