The Office of Diversity Programs staff is here to help. Find out more about us below.
Will R. Ross, MD, MPH
Associate Dean for Diversity
Principal Officer for Community Partnerships
Alumni Endowed Professor of Medicine, Division of Nephrology
Will Ross, MD, MPH, is associate dean for diversity, principal officer for community partnerships, and alumni endowed professor of medicine in the Nephrology Division at Washington University School of Medicine. For over twenty-five years Dr. Ross has developed innovative medical school pipeline programs and recruited and developed a diverse workforce of medical students, residents and faculty. He has promoted health equity locally, nationally and globally through collaborations with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and public health officials in Ethiopia and Haiti. He recently co-developed an undergraduate program in public health in Haiti. As a public health and health policy leader, Dr. Ross focuses on systems integration and conceptual frameworks to reduce health-care disparities. He is a co-founder of the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Center for Diversity and Cultural Competence (now the BJC Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) and served on the task force that created the Washington University Institute for Public Health, while serving as co-director of the new MD/MPH program. He served as vice chair of the Washington University Commission on Diversity and Inclusion. Within the St. Louis community, he has been instrumental in redesigning local access to health care for the underserved as the founder of the former Saturday Free Health Clinic and co-founder of Casa de Salud Latino Health Center. Dr. Ross is also advisory board chair and founding member of the Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience, a magnet health professions high school in St. Louis.
Dr. Ross previously served as the chief medical officer and director of community health clinics for the St. Louis Regional Medical Center, a safety-net hospital in St. Louis. In 2001 he was appointed a charter and founding member, and recently strategic planning chair, of the St. Louis Regional Health Commission, which has leveraged over $500 million dollars to St. Louis to maintain an integrated network of safety net primary care clinics and public health services. He served as Chairman of the board of directors of the Missouri Foundation for Health, where he directed the Foundation’s creation of the nonprofit organization, Health Literacy Media, of which he serves as vice-chair. He served on the Institute of Medicine’s Health Literacy Roundtable, where he evaluated health literacy efforts at the international level. He is former Chairman of the boards of the Mid America Transplant Foundation and the St. Louis City Board of Health, and a past member of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Health Disparities Committee, where he helped incorporate social determinants of health in the CDC promotions framework and Healthy People 2020. In 2019 he was appointed to the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership, where he co-chaired the partnership’s strategic planning. He currently serves as chair of the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Advancing Holistic Review Committee, and is a founding associate editor of the public health journal, Frontiers in Public Health Education and Promotion.
Dr. Ross has numerous scientific publications and is co-author of two books, Poverty and Place, published in 2019 by Lexington Press, and Charting the Path Forward for Low Income Women of Color, published in 2022 by Oxford University Press. He has received several distinguished honors and awards, including the 2005 State of Missouri Dr. Martin Luther King Distinguished Service in Medicine Award, the 2009 Washington University Medical Center Alumni Faculty Achievement Award, the 2013 Samuel Goldstein Leadership in Medical Education Award, the 2022 American College of Physician’s Oscar E. Edwards Memorial Award for Volunteerism and Community Service, and faculty induction into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society and Delta Omega Honorary Society in Public Health. He is the recipient of the 2020 Outstanding Scientist Trustee Award from the Academy of Science of St. Louis. A graduate of Yale University, he completed medical school at Washington University School of Medicine, an Internal Medicine residency at Vanderbilt University, and a Renal Fellowship at Washington University. He completed a Master of Science in Epidemiology at Saint Louis University School of Public Health.
Read a message from Dr. Ross addressing diversity at the university »
Lisa Stevenson, MBA
Assistant Dean for Student Diversity and Engagement
As the assistant dean for student diversity and engagement, Lisa Stevenson directs the planning, implementation and evaluation of key initiatives integral to the Office’s mission to prepare a diverse student body to become leaders in a vibrant, global society.
Leading the effort to recruit and retain students from groups traditionally underrepresented in medicine, she serves on the Committee on Admissions and works closely with the School’s Student National Medical Association (SNMA), Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) and the LGBTQ Med student groups.
Read about SNMA, LMSA and the LGBTQ student groups »
She worked as a human resource consultant and analyst before moving on to the position of associate director of multicultural recruitment at Washington University’s Danforth Campus. In 1997, she joined the Office of Diversity Programs at the School of Medicine.
Ms. Stevenson earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Harvard University and a master’s of business administration from Washington University in St. Louis through a fellowship from the Consortium Graduate Study in Management, an organization that fosters diversity and inclusion in American business.
Read a message from Dean Stevenson welcoming students »
Joareliz Peña Martínez, MS
Project/Program Coordinator
As the Project/Program Coordinator for the Office of Diversity Programs at WashU Medicine, Joa plays a key role in supporting initiatives that promote a welcoming and supportive academic environment to all students.
Drawing from her personal experiences, Joa’s is dedicated to fostering student achievement and supporting pathways that encourage a broad range of perspectives within the medical community. Throughout her career, she has navigated various roles, fostering a deep passion for promoting student success. From collaborating with student organizations to instructing as an English as a Second Language online educator, Joa’s background reflects a steadfast commitment to inclusivity.
Joa’s educational journey and professional experiences converge to fuel her commitment to cultivating an environment where every student can thrive, contribute meaningfully, and pursue their goals with confidence. As an integral part of the Office of Diversity Programs, her focus is on contributing to the recruitment and retention of students.
Proud to be part of WashU’s ongoing commitment to creating an inclusive academic community, Joa looks forward to continuing her work supporting students and contributing to the university’s mission of excellence in education and health equity.
Rachel White
Administrative Assistant
As the Administrative Assistant for the Office of Diversity Programs at WashU Medicine, Rachel supports a gifted team that includes Associate Dean Will Ross, MD, Assistant Dean Lisa Stevenson, MBA, and Program Coordinator Joa Peña Martínez, MS.
While earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, Rachel studied social sciences and majored in visual communication and design. Following graduation, she completed an internship in social media for a major health care system where she specialized in highlighting the contributions of physicians and inventors from a wide range of backgrounds to American medicine.
Rachel is grateful for the opportunity to serve the students and faculty of WashU Medicine, and to support the university’s commitment to true inclusivity.
Contact us
Phone: 314-362-6854
medschooldiversity@wusm.wustl.edu