Her title is new , but Dean Alma Littles , M . D ., has a long , rich history with the College of Medicine
A
physician and educator at heart , Alma B . Littles , M . D ., can trace her interest in administration to a request that predated the birth of the Florida State University College of Medicine .
“ The medical school administration bug bit when I was asked to serve on the focus group formed to determine if FSU should have a full four-year medical school ,” said Littles , who at the time was director of the Family Medicine Residency Program at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare . “ I was already hooked on the rewards of medical education at the Graduate Medical Education level , and the excitement expanded with the idea of helping create a medical school in the same town as the residency program and just a few miles from my hometown .”
Twenty-two years after joining the college to chair the Department of Family Medicine and Rural Health in August of 2002 , the Quincy native is its dean .
By Bob Thomas , FSU College of Medicine
and remained successful ,” Littles said . “ That ’ s also when I realized that this was a calling for me .”
She was also in place when the initial three regional campuses – Orlando , Pensacola and Tallahassee – welcomed the first group of third-year medical students to begin their clinical education in 2003 . Additional campuses in Sarasota ( 2005 ) and Daytona Beach and Fort Pierce ( 2007 ) followed to further accommodate the college ’ s enrollment as it expanded from 30 students in its inaugural class to its maximum and current class size of 120 , which arrived in 2007 .
There are now nearly 3,000 physicians across the state of Florida providing hands-on clinical instruction as residency , preceptor and clerkship faculty , fulfilling the innovative , community-based model of one-on-one education which made the College of Medicine unique from the outset .
Then , again , so is its leader .
Her ascent , including a 17-month stint as interim dean that officially ended July 1 , has paralleled the college ’ s growth .
Today , there are 154 full-time faculty at the College of Medicine , compared to 54 when she signed on , advancing the college ’ s mission through a wide range of education programs . They include : 14 graduate medical education residencies or fellowships , a Ph . D . in Biomedical Sciences , M . S . degrees in Physician Assistant Practice and Biomedical Sciences – Bridge to Clinical Medicine , as well as the undergraduate Interdisciplinary Medical Sciences bachelor ’ s degree .
Each of those programs was launched since Littles , after just six months , moved from Family Medicine and Rural Health to the dean ’ s suite to oversee the complete development of the college ’ s education program , including its accreditation .
“ At that point , as it did for several others , the FSU College of Medicine became my baby , and I was determined to do all I could to see that it became
THE MOTIVATION
The youngest of Willie Brown Sr . and Mattie Mae Brown ’ s 12 children , Littles was born into a family of rural farm workers , where family , community , church and education were prioritized . She would go on to become the first in her family to attend and graduate from college , attending the University of Florida , where she later earned her Doctor of Medicine degree .
There were several significant people and events that influenced her career path , beginning with her second-grade teacher , Hazel Jones , who planted the seed that would germinate into a medical career .
“ I never forgot her words , ‘ Alma , when you grow up , I think you should be a doctor ,’” Littles said .
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