WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) recently announced the election of Andrea Hayes Dixon, M.D., FACS, dean and senior vice president of health affairs at Howard University College of Medicine, as one of its newest members. According to NAM, membership in the organization “is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine and recognizes individuals who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievement and commitment to service.”
"Being elected to the National Academy of Medicine is an incredible honor,” said Hayes Dixon. “The National Academy of Medicine recognizes individuals who have made more than just a contribution to the field of medicine but have changed the way we practice medicine. Over the 20 years that I have been studying rare childhood cancers, I hope my contributions have moved the field forward, and closer to cures."
Hayes Dixon’s recognition is “for pioneering cytoreductive therapy for rare pediatric cancers, increasing survival rates from 30% to 70%,” according to NAM. As the first African American woman to become a pediatric surgeon in the U.S. and the first woman to become dean of the Howard University College of Medicine, she is inspiring and training the next generation of physicians, including but not limited to those from underrepresented backgrounds.
“Throughout her trailblazing career, Dean Andrea Hayes Dixon has not only been a pioneer in medical research and practice, but she has also inspired countless students and health professionals as a physician, educator, and mentor,” said Wayne A. I. Frederick (B.S. ’92, M.D. ’94, MBA ’11), Howard University interim president, president emeritus, Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery, and a member of NAM. “The Howard University family extends our sincerest congratulations to Dean Hayes Dixon for receiving this high honor and our deepest appreciation for the impact she continues to have at Howard, across the nation, and around the world.”
In addition to becoming the first African American woman to achieve Board certification as a pediatric surgeon, Dr. Hayes Dixon was the first surgeon in the world to perform a high-risk, life-saving procedure in teens with rare forms of abdominal cancer. In addition to leading Howard’s College of Medicine, the oldest medical school at a historically Black college or university, Hayes Dixon is also president of the American Pediatric Surgical Association and a regent in the American College of Surgeons. In 2024, she was named among Modern Healthcare magazine’s class of the most influential people in health care.
Dean Hayes Dixon is one of many Howard faculty members to become members of NAM. Howard-affiliated inductees include Dr. Frederick; LaSalle D. Leffall Jr. (M.D. ’52), former chair of Howard’s Department of Surgery, former Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery, and a 1973 inductee; Jeanne Craig Sinkford, Ph.D. (B.S. ’53, DDS ’58), professor emerita, dean emerita of Howard University College of Dentistry, and a 1975 inductee; and Renée R. Jenkins, M.D., professor emerita, former chair of Howard’s Department of Pediatrics and Child Care, and a 2001 inductee, among other Howard-affiliated health professionals, researchers, and scholars.
NAM addresses critical issues in health, science, medicine, and related policy, working to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation, solve complex problems, and inform public policy decisions. NAM’s highly selective membership are those “who have made major contributions to the advancement of the medical sciences, health care, and public health.” In addition to health professionals, its membership also includes others who have made contributions to health-related fields, including lawyers, engineers, social scientists, and the humanities professionals.
Release Date: 10.21.2025.
Contact: mediarelations@howard.edu
Lydia Sermons or Carol Wilkerson (Phone: 202-288-7071)
About Howard University
Howard University, established in 1867, is a leading private research university based in Washington, D.C. Howard’s 14 schools and colleges offer 140 undergraduate, graduate, and professional degree programs and lead the nation in producing African Americans with professional doctoral degrees. Howard is the top-ranked historically Black college or university according to Forbes, the only HBCU with an R1 research institution designation, and the only HBCU ranked among U.S. News & World Report’s Top 100 National Universities. Renowned for its esteemed faculty, high achieving students, and commitment to excellence, leadership, truth and service, Howard produces distinguished alumni across all sectors, which have included the first Black U.S. Supreme Court justice and the first woman U.S. vice president; a Nobel Prize laureate; Schwarzman, Marshall, Rhodes and Truman Scholars; prestigious fellows; and over 170 Fulbright recipients. Learn more at www.howard.edu.