OUHSC names interim Vice President of Research

Mary Beth Humphrey, M.D., Ph.D. will serve as Interim Vice President of Research at the OU Health Sciences Center. Dr. Humphrey has been a faculty member in the OU College of Medicine for the past 16 years, and three years ago, she was named the college’s Associate Dean for Research. This role, in addition to her own active research focus, gives her a unique perspective and understanding of research needs on campus. At the OU Health Sciences Center, Dr. Humphrey’s insight has been a valuable asset in her service on a number of administrative committees, and she will continue to serve as chair of the Research Strategic Plan Oversight Committee. In her role as Interim Vice President of Research, she will initially focus on the development and implementation of the HSC Strategic Plan – specifically with regard to research – with the ultimate goal of making HSC a top-tier research-driven academic health center. 

She earned her M.D. and Ph.D. at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston before completing her internal medicine internship, residency, chief residency, and rheumatology fellowship at the University of California San Francisco. Dr. Humphrey is an internationally renowned scholar in the field of osteoimmunology and osteoporosis, focusing on interactions of the bone microenvironment with the immune system. Her impactful body of research has maintained consistent NIH funding since she joined the OU faculty, having received $10 million in grants. She has an active laboratory, which focuses on understanding the role of myeloid cells in human diseases, including osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, and Alzheimer’s disease.