About Melina Kibbe, MD

Melina Kibbe, MD assumed the role of president of UTHealth Houston and the Alkek-Williams Distinguished Chair in September 2025. Prior to this appointment, she served as dean of the University of Virginia (UVA) School of Medicine and chief health affairs officer. Dr. Kibbe is a nationally recognized leader in vascular surgery and previously chaired the Department of Surgery at the University of North Carolina (UNC). Before joining UNC, she was vice chair for Research in the Department of Surgery and deputy director of the Simpson Querrey Institute for BioNanotechnology at Northwestern University.

Dr. Kibbe earned her medical degree from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine. She completed her internship, residency, and research fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, followed by a vascular surgery fellowship at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Clinically, she has extensive experience in both open and endovascular surgical procedures. She is board-certified in general and vascular surgery and holds RVT and RPVI certifications from the American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography (ARDMS).

Her Research focuses on the development of novel drug-eluting therapies for vascular disease, with parallel investigations into the biological mechanisms by which these therapies affect the vasculature. Dr. Kibbe has served as principal investigator on numerous grants funded by the NIH, Department of Defense, VA, American Heart Association, and American Medical Association, among others. She has also participated as a co-investigator, consultant, or mentor on many federally funded projects. In addition, she has been a national or site principal investigator for multiple gene- and cell-based clinical trials for critical limb ischemia and has served as a consultant for clinical trials targeting peripheral artery disease. She holds more than 10 issued or provisional patents. Her research excellence was recognized in 2009 when President Obama awarded her the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

Dr. Kibbe has held numerous national leadership roles. She is the Editor-in-Chief of JAMA Surgery, currently the top-ranked surgery journal worldwide. She has served as president of the Association for Academic Surgery, the Midwestern Vascular Surgical Society, the Association of VA Surgeons, and the Surgical Biology Club II. She also serves as Secretary of the American Surgical Association, Chair of the Scholarship Committee for the American College of Surgeons, and is an active member of many professional organizations. She has been inducted into the American Society for Clinical Investigation and, most notably, the National Academy of Medicine.

A strong advocate for sex inclusion in biomedical Research, Dr. Kibbe has brought national attention to the issue through her scholarly work and media appearances, including interviews on 60 Minutes with Leslie Stahl and The Colbert Report. Her Research on sex bias in surgical studies has influenced policy development at the NIH, Government Accountability Office, and FDA, and contributed to the introduction of the “Research for All Act of 2015” in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Dr. Kibbe’s scholarly output includes more than 300 peer-reviewed manuscripts, review articles, and book chapters, as well as over 240 abstracts presented at national and international meetings. She has received numerous honors, including the Society of Vascular Surgery Women’s Leadership Award, AMWA Gender Equity Award, AMSA Women Leaders in Medicine Award, Northwestern University Tripartite Award, Association of VA Surgeons Presidential Citation, University of Chicago Distinguished Service Award, and the Virginia Business 2023 Women in Leadership Award. She is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society and has earned 24 teaching excellence awards in recognition of her dedication to medical education. She also co-founded VesselTek BioMedical, LLC, where she served as chief medical officer, focusing on the development of medical devices for vascular disease.

Born and raised in Southern California, Melina Kibbe, MD graduated from the University of Chicago College of Biological Sciences in 1990 and from the Pritzker School of Medicine in 1994. She completed her postgraduate training at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in 2002 and her vascular surgery fellowship at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in 2003. She further enhanced her leadership training through the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine Program for Women at Drexel University College of Medicine in 2012 and the Management Skills for Innovative University Leaders program at the Kellogg School of Management in 2009.