Medical School Dean Honored for Service

The Empowerment Network presented Philip Alderson, M.D., dean of the School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs, with its Wind Beneath Our Wings Award last week.

The award is given to one member of the community each year who has gone above expectations to help The Empowerment Network, a grass roots organization that supports underserved men and their families who are impacted by prostate cancer.

“Dr. Alderson has helped us to soar to greater heights than would have been possible on our own. He’s more than a community partner. Dr. Alderson is a friend who always took the time out of his busy schedule to help us,” said Mellve Shahid, CEO of The Empowerment Network.

Shahid noted that Alderson was at the helm of the medical school, which received a five-year grant to partner with established advocacy organizations to fight cancer in minorities. Through the grant, The Empowerment Network expanded prostate cancer screenings and took its message of early detection and community education to the radio airwaves.

Alderson retires from Saint Louis University at the end of the year, and will be succeeded by Kevin Behrns, M.D., effective Jan. 1, 2017.