News and Progress
Gift creates Tom and Anne Smith MD-PhD Program
$2 million for scholarships for dual-degree students
March 18, 2009
Tom and Anne Smith are joined by MD-PhD students Brian Bostick, left, and Kevin Fisher, second from right, and Dr. Amanda Brodeur, at a celebration of their $2 million gift to the School of Medicine.
Biomedical research has progressed rapidly, and medicine is now experiencing what experts call a "scientific bottleneck." Discoveries made by scientists in the lab have provided an enormous amount of new information, but most physicians outside the lab have not been adequately trained on how to apply that information to the benefit of patients.
To help relieve the bottleneck, Tom and Anne Smith of Columbia have provided $2 million in scholarship support for MU students who want to become physician-scientists, and the University of Missouri School of Medicine has created the Tom and Anne Smith MD-PhD Program.
"Anne and I believe that MD-PhD students deserve support in their pursuit to provide all of us with improved health care and quality of life," said Tom Smith, BA '84. "For MD-PhD students, a joint degree is a time-consuming and costly venture, but there are great potential rewards by giving students an opportunity to develop lifesaving treatments."
Students who complete an MD-PhD program are uniquely qualified to conduct, lead and train others in translational - or bench-to-bedside - research, said Douglas Anthony, MD, PhD, director of the Tom and Anne Smith MD-PhD Program.
"By taking advantage of the remarkable advances in our understanding of human biology and the molecular and genetic basis of disease, our MD-PhD graduates will help translate discoveries into new methods for treating, preventing and managing health problems," Anthony said. "Some of the nation's brightest medical students are enrolled in the Tom and Anne Smith MD-PhD Program, and they have access to outstanding faculty mentors."
MD-PhD graduates also are better able to communicate with both clinical and laboratory researchers, and they are often better prepared to explain the importance of research to patients who could benefit from clinical trials. Physician-scientists in general are expected to become powerful new advocates for educating the public about the importance of translational research, as well as making translational research happen through their own efforts.
"Tom and Anne Smith have provided a transformational gift that will help tear down financial barriers for students considering careers in academic medicine," said MU Chancellor Brady Deaton, PhD. "The Smiths' support of MD-PhD students will result in the development of outstanding medical minds at MU. Graduates of their program will also go on to advance patient care, research and education throughout the world."
Tom Smith received a computer science degree from MU in 1984 and went on to found Datastorm Technologies, a software development company headquartered in Columbia. He is the president of Smith Investment Management, Flat Branch Pub and Brewing, and Sirius Hospitality LLC, which owns the HuHot Mongolian Grill franchise in Columbia and St. Louis. The Smiths, who are deeply devoted to preserving and protecting animals, also support the University Concert Series and have previously established a scholarship endowment in computer science in the College of Arts and Science at MU. In addition, Tom Smith currently serves as a trustee for the Missouri Chapter of The Nature Conservancy.