ON THE HILL
School of Medicine Ranks High for Rural Care
School of Medicine ranks high when it comes to graduates who take the rural medicine route.
THE UMKC SCHOOL OF MEDICINE ranked in the top 50 and top 100 in two categories in the U.S. News and World Report rankings for 2025. The school ranked number 35 for Most Graduates Practicing in Medically Underserved Areas and number 89 for Most Graduates Practicing in Rural Areas.
According to Dean Alexander Norbash, these rankings highlight the school’s ongoing efforts to serve areas that are currently lacking access to healthcare.
“This recognition underscores our commitment to addressing the healthcare needs of Missouri’s rural communities,” said Norbash. “Our St. Joseph Campus plays a pivotal role in this mission, equipping students with the skills and experiences necessary to serve in areas where healthcare providers are most needed.”
RooLink: School of Medicine Students Form Entrepreneurship Incubator
RooLink members with Dean Alexander Norbash (front row). Second Row (left to right): Hrushi Saranu and Christina Cacoulidis; Third Row: Brody Whalen, AJ Jenkins, Samuel Kim; Back Row: Rishabh Gaur, Brandon Park, Zubin Mathew.
IT CAN TAKE A VILLAGE to turn an idea into an actual product or business, so a group of School of Medicine student innovators decided to form their own. RooLink was cofounded in late 2024 as a healthcare-focused incubator aimed at connecting entrepreneurship-minded students with mentors.
“RooLink was inspired by the lack of accessible, structured pathways for students to turn their healthcare innovation ideas into reality,” said Brandon Park, RooLink operations manager and UMKC medical student. “Many students have ideas, but lack mentorship, awareness of resources or flexible programming that fits their schedules.”
As a student-led interdisciplinary collaboration, RooLink is “designed to get medical students involved in the world of business and entrepreneurship,” according to cofounder and UMKC medical student Rishabh Gaur. RooLink also collaborates with the School of Engineering and the Henry W. Bloch School of Management.
According to Park, RooLink aims to run in six- to 12-month incubator cycles that involve business education modules, mentorship, pitch events for fundraising, a speaker series and idea dinners to foster entrepreneurial development. The program empowers students to eventually pitch and secure the funding needed to bring their products and/or businesses to fruition.
The idea for RooLink was inspired by Stanford, MIT and University of California-San Diego (UCSD). These schools created similar programs, sparking an entrepreneurial culture at their medical schools. Thankfully for the UMKC group, the founder of one of those programs currently sits in the dean’s office at the School of Medicine.
Dean Alexander Norbash (B.A. ’85/M.D. ’86) created Blue LINC at UCSD and was immediately supportive of RooLink when the group came to meet with him. According to Zubin Mathew, several successful businesses had their start at Blue LINC.
“We have been fortunate enough to work with one of Stanford’s medical incubator founders, who has given us ideas on how to be successful,” said Mathew, cofounder and medical student.
RooLink seeks to fund startups originating out of the School of Medicine, but first it needs to develop enough seed capital itself.
“In the funding environment we are experiencing now, industry partnership is more important than ever for pushing forward scientific progress for curative therapies in our patients,” said Samuel Kim, another cofounder and medical student.
RooLink hopes to pitch at least 20 ideas at next year’s Regnier Venture Creation Challenge at the Bloch School, a competition where students from all over the Midwest pitch their ideas to esteemed judges, industry experts and potential investors with cash prizes on the line.
"We hope to develop a track (within Regnier Venture Creation Challenge) dedicated to medical entrepreneurship,” said Gaur.
According to RooLink members, fundraising is essential to pay for the cost to form that medical track and to develop resources and workshops for students to learn proper skills. They also have a goal of hosting a preliminary pitch competition within the Health Sciences Campus community, with student participants from the schools of Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.
For Park and his peers, RooLink offers a unique pathway for medicine-driven entrepreneurship that never existed before.
“RooLink is the first initiative of its kind in Kansas City, driven entirely by students and supported by faculty and community partners,” said Park. “RooLink is more than just a startup. It’s about creating a culture of innovation that empowers future healthcare leaders.”“I really like the extremities of the world,” Feuerbacher said. “I like to explore things that few people in the world have seen, see how other people live. I want to experience other cultures, other lifestyles.”
Scrubs to the Sidelines: PA Student Balances School and Cheer
Carly Hays keeps busy managing a full class schedule and a full home game schedule as a PA student and a Kansas City Chiefs cheerleader.
AS A PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT (PA) student at the School of Medicine and a cheerleader for the Kansas City Chiefs, Carly Hays spends most of her time either on bustling hospital floors or inside the loudest stadium in the world.
Hays moved to Kansas City from St. Louis at an early age and considers herself a true Kansas Citian.
“Kansas City is where I grew up and where I’ve built my life,” she said.
Hays was drawn to UMKC because of its successful PA program. She also liked that she was able to stay close to home after completing her undergrad degree in Columbia.
The discipline Hays has learned through dance and cheer has helped her out with her studies.
“(My first year in the program) was the most mentally and physically challenging thing I’ve ever done,” she said. “I had to completely relearn how to study, but the support from my cohort and faculty has been incredible.”
UMKC is an official higher education partner of the Chiefs, a partnership Hays says she has loved experiencing firsthand.
Hays takes pride in representing Kansas City on and off the field. Through her clinical experiences at University Health, she has been able to serve the community that shaped her.
“UMKC’s partnership with University Health allows me to provide care to Kansas Citians,” she said. “It’s a great representation of giving back to the city that raised me.”
SPOTLIGHT ON: OB-GYN Department
IN MAY, the School of Medicine’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB-GYN) continued an annual tradition and welcomed Stephen Fleischman, M.D., to the Diastole Scholars' Center for a Kansas City Gynecological Society event. Fleischman is the president of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). UMKC’s OB-GYN department has been hosting the incoming ACOG president in Kansas City before their national installation for more than decade.
OB-GYN RESIDENCY PROGRAM FACTS:
- Graduating residents are inducted into the Youngblood Society.
- Dr. Youngblood was one of the longest-serving chairs of the UMKC OBGYN Department.
- UMKC’s program is the largest in the Kansas City area.
- UMKC’s training efforts extend beyond residency, and include fellowships in:
–Maternal-Fetal Medicine (high-risk pregnancy) –Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology –Urogynecology, Pelvic and Reconstructive Surgery
Stephen Fleischman, M.D. (bottom left), president of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, visits the KC GYN Society, hosted by UMKC’s OB-GYN Department at the Diastole Scholars’ Center.
Faculty Member Joins National Academy of Inventors
Mark Hoffman, Ph.D., has been named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors
SCHOOL OF MEDICINE pediatrics professor Mark Hoffman, Ph.D., has been inducted as a fellow into the National Academy of Inventors. The recognition is the highest professional distinction given exclusively to inventors.
Hoffman, who is also chief research information officer at Children’s Mercy Kansas City, has made significant contributions to the field of medical technology throughout his nearly three-decade career. His work has resulted in 22 U.S. patents and three international patents.
“In fifth grade, I chose to do my first formal report on Thomas Edison, sparking my lifelong interest in invention,” Hoffman said. “Being elected as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors is a humbling recognition of my career.”Ritter realized his interest in art and art history while he was in school. But studying to become a doctor took precedence, and college electives in art history gave way to courses leading to a degree in chemistry, followed by medical school. Ritter graduated from Philadelphia’s Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University in 1971. He trained in internal medicine at Emory University, followed by a cardiology fellowship at the University of Texas Southwestern.
Founding Dean's Fund
THE FOUNDING DEAN’S FUND, created in honor of the School of Medicine’s first dean, Richardson K. Noback, M.D., is continuing its mission to support student success at UMKC.
Each year, the School of Medicine dean collaborates with student leadership to identify current student needs. The School of Medicine Alumni Board then selects at least one need to support. This year, funds were used to help supply all year-five B.A./M.D. students with UWorld Prep study materials. Students use these materials to prepare for Step 2 CK, and a one-year subscription can cost more than $550 per student.
The Noback Society Donors who give $2,500 or more to the Founding Dean’s Fund in a fiscal year become automatic members of The Noback Society. The School of Medicine thanks The Noback Society, and all those who contributed to the Founding Dean’s Fund, for helping to lessen the financial burden of our students! If you are interested in donating to this cause, scan the QR code to learn more.
The Noback Society Members Jean Ayres (M.D. ’78) Deepa H. Chand (B.A./M.D. ’96) and Bipan Chand (B.A. ’94/M.D. ’96) Thomas P. Hubbell (M.D. ’75) and Patricia Hubbell (M.D. ’75) Mary Anne Jackson (B.A. ’77/M.D. ’78) and Jay A. Jackson (B.A. ’77/M.D. ’78) Michele Kilo (B.A./M.D. ’84) and Blake Matthews Alexander J. Kim (B.A./M.D. ’96) Derik K. King (B.A. ’92/M.D. ’93) and Jacqueline Heflin King Daphne Rae Ondr (B.A. ’96/M.D. ’97) and Jeff Odnr (B.A. ’95/M.D. ’96) Amit J. Patel (BLA ’04/M.D. ’05) and Neha Patel (BLA/M.D. ’02) Mamta Reddy (B.A. ’96/M.D. ’98) Stanley G. Shaffer (B.A. ’77/M.D. ’79) and Kathleen B. Shaffer (B.A. ’76/M.D. ’79) Aakash Shah (BLA ’03/M.D. ’04) and Abha Shah (BLA ’04/M.D. ’05) Mark T. Steele (B.A./M.D. ’80) and Ginni Steele Mary Pat Strickland-Lange (B.A./M.D. ’85) and Michael Lange, M.D. Michael L. Weaver (B.A./M.D. ’77) and Jamila Weaver Jeffrey A. Wright (B.A. ’77/M.D. ’78) and Sara L. Wright Andy Zimmerman (B.A. ’85/M.D. ’87) and Sussanne Slater
