College of Human Medicine Leadership Transition

Sept. 10, 2025

Dear Colleagues and University Leaders,

I write today to share the exciting news that College of Human Medicine Dean Aron Sousa has been named as the new president of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, based in Chicago. I say exciting because we are proud of Aron and this new professional opportunity to continue influencing and shaping how healthcare is administered, but this is certainly also a loss for us, given the big shoes he leaves behind for us to fill. 

Dean Sousa has been a strong and valued clinician and leader at MSU for 30 years. In 2022, he became the seventh dean of the College of Human Medicine after having served twice as interim dean, from 2015-2016 and again from 2019-2022. As the leader of the college’s $40+ million expansion in Flint, he was the primary investigator on the C.S. Mott Foundation grants that led to the college establishing the College of Human Medicine building and the creation of the Charles Stewart Mott Department of Public Health in Flint. The newest addition to its downtown campus, a 40,000-square-foot, three-story building, opened in August 2025.

When he was senior associate dean for academic affairs, Aron managed the nation’s largest medical school expansion, doubling the college’s class size and converting its two-year, 60-student Grand Rapids campus into a four-year, 350-student campus. He also led the creation of the college’s innovative Shared Discovery Curriculum and was responsible for the medical education programs at the college’s eight statewide community campuses. Under his leadership, the college strengthened its rural health medical education program in the UP, Traverse City, and Midland to encourage students to practice in underserved rural areas as physicians.

Since becoming dean, Aron has been central to the development of the MSU Grand Rapids Innovation Park and assisted in creating the Henry Ford Health partnership in Detroit. More recently, he appointed the interim chairs of the college’s six new statewide departments, anchored at Henry Ford Health. In 2024, he also took on the role of executive dean for MSU health colleges, while the university, under President Guskiewicz’s leadership, began exploring new opportunities for university structures, alignment, and improved ability to produce outstanding healthcare leaders. 

The One Health Council and initiative will continue, and if you missed the update provided last week by co-chairs Dean Kim Dodd and SVP Norm Hubbard, I encourage you to review the progress and next steps. 

With Aron’s departure, I will be recommending Dr. Supratik Rayamajhi as interim dean of the College of Human Medicine, effective October 1, 2025, and pending MSU Board of Trustees approval. He has kindly agreed to serve in this role until a national search is conducted and a new dean is selected. Dr. Rayamajhi is currently associate dean for clinical affairs and associate professor of internal medicine. A graduate of the Michigan State University Internal Medicine Residency Program, he joined the College of Human Medicine faculty in 2011. He has served in several administrative roles, including clerkship director, residency director, vice chair for education, senior vice chair for clinical strategy, and interim chair for the Department of Medicine. I am grateful to Supratik for taking on this interim leadership role and providing continuity for the college during this time of transition.

I also want to note that while Dean Sousa has been serving in the additional role of executive dean, with his departure the organizational structure will revert back to having all three medical college deans (College of Human Medicine, College of Osteopathic Medicine, and College of Nursing) report directly to the provost. After the One Health Council report is presented to President Guskiewicz later this semester, a decision will be made regarding a permanent organizational and reporting structure.

Please join me in congratulating Aron on an outstanding and impactful career here at Michigan State University – and in wishing him well in his new presidency at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science.

Warm regards,

Laura Lee McIntyre, Ph.D.
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
MSU Research Foundation Professor, Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education