Dr. William Meeker named
West Campus president
Dr. William Meeker |
William Meeker, D.C., M.P.H., has been named president of
Palmer College of Chiropractic’s West Campus in San Jose,
Calif., effective Jan. 3, 2007. With Dr. Meeker’s appointment,
Peter Martin, D.C., now serves exclusively as president of
Palmer’s Florida Campus. Dr. Martin was named interim
president of the West Campus in 2004, and then president
of both the West and Florida campuses in 2005.
Dr. Peter Martin |
After graduating from Palmer’s West Campus in 1982, Dr. Meeker
maintained a private practice in San Jose and served as assistant
professor in the Division of Research with the West Campus from
1983 until 1986. He was named associate dean of research in
1986. In 1988, he earned his master’s degree in Public Health
from San Jose State University. Dr. Meeker became dean of research at the West Campus in
1989 and served in that role until 1995. At that time, he was named director of the Palmer
Center for Chiropractic Research on Palmer’s Davenport Campus. Since 2001, he has served
as Palmer College’s vice president for research.
Dr. Goertz Choate is new executive
director of Research Center
Dr. Christine Goertz Choate |
Christine Goertz Choate, D.C., Ph.D., has been hired to succeed Dr. Meeker as executive
director for the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research. She oversees the College’s
research efforts from Palmer’s new Washington, D.C., office, where she also monitors
and coordinates government relations activities pertaining to the chiropractic profession.
Dr. Goertz Choate comes to Palmer from the Samueli Institute for Information Biology
in Alexandria, Va., where she was director of clinical research from 2003 to 2005, until
being named deputy director in 2005. Previously, Dr. Goertz Choate was the first chiropractor
hired by the National Institutes of Health as a health sciences administrator at
the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Bethesda, Md.
Dr. Wood appointed dean of
Clinics on Davenport Campus
Dr. Kurt Wood |
Kurt Wood, D.C., has been appointed dean of Clinics at Palmer’s Davenport Campus. He
comes to Palmer after 20 years at Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington,
Minn., where he was a staff clinician and professor in the College of Chiropractic. He also
served as department chair, program chair, associate dean of academics, associate dean of
clinical services, and as Northwestern’s compliance, privacy and security officer.
Prior to graduating from Palmer College of Chiropractic’s Davenport Campus in 1979,
Dr. Wood completed Bachelor of Science degrees in biology and chemistry at Upper Iowa
University. He maintained a private practice in Wisconsin from 1979 to 2005, then
practiced in Minnesota until accepting his current position at Palmer.
Dr. Owens
named director of CLRC
Dr. James Owens |
James Owens, D.C., has been named director of the Chiropractic Learning Resource
Center (CLRC) on the Davenport Campus. Reporting to Dr. Wood, Dr. Owens
manages the CLRC’s operations and is responsible for the quality and delivery of
patient care, as well as intern education. A 1982 graduate of Palmer’s Davenport
Campus, in 2003, Dr. Owens was named assistant director of the Main Clinic and
served as a faculty clinician, then was named the Main Clinic’s interim director in
November 2005.
Dr. McDonald becomes
assistant chancellor
Dr. Clay McDonald |
Clay McDonald, D.C., M.B.A., J.D., has joined
Palmer College as assistant chancellor to Larry
Patten. Mr. Patten’s original position, chief
executive officer, has been revised to chancellor
to match guidelines in place with the
Commission on Accreditation of the Council
on Chiropractic Education. Dr. McDonald
works with Mr. Patten and the College administrative
team to develop and implement operational
systems and a program of continual
improvement. He also assists with monitoring
chiropractic education issues at various government
levels.
Dr. McDonald graduated from Logan
College of Chiropractic in 1982. He earned
a Master of Business Administration
degree from St. Ambrose University,
Davenport, Iowa, in 1997, and a Juris
Doctorate from Valparaiso University
School of Law in 2001. Beginning in
1990, Dr. McDonald spent nearly a
decade at Palmer College’s Davenport
Campus as an associate professor,
faculty clinician and director of Ancillary
Procedures. He then served as dean of
clinics before being named special advisor
to the president. Beginning in 2002, Dr.
McDonald served as New York College
of Chiropractic’s dean of academic affairs,
before becoming executive vice president
of academic affairs.