Leadership
Loretta Jackson-Williams, MD, PhD, FACEP
Vice Dean for Medical Education
Professor of Emergency Medicine
School of Medicine
Dr. Loretta Jackson-Williams grew up in Indianola, Miss., where she attended Gentry High School. Both of her parents worked in the Sunflower County School system, her father as a principal and her mother as a resource teacher.
In 1987 she graduated from Tougaloo College with a degree in chemistry. While in college, she intermittently worked as a substitute teacher in her local public school system. In 1994 she completed her studies at Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, Mass., with a doctorate in biochemistry and a medical degree. During the summer of 1991, she worked with the Summer Science Program at Tougaloo College as the chemistry lab instructor and mentor for the attendees.
From Boston she traveled to California and completed her residency in emergency medicine at Highland Hospital in the Alameda County Medical Center of Oakland, Calif., in 1998. As a resident she served as the research chief. She remained as a junior attending at Highland Hospital after completion of residency and was responsible for the educational program for rotating residents in the Emergency Department. Jackson-Williams joined the faculty of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in 1999, with a focus on student education in the department. She served as the clerkship director from 1999-2008 and the assistant program director from 2001-03. During this time she developed a sustained educational program for students and residents.
Jackson-Williams has been a member of the School of Medicine Curriculum Committee since 2000 and has served as its chair since 2008. During that same year she joined the administrative team of the School of Medicine as assistant dean for academic affairs. In 2009 she was named associate dean for academic affairs. In 2015 her responsibilities were expanded when she was named Vice Dean for Medical Education. She is committed to delivering an exceptional educational program to produce competent, capable and compassionate physicians.