Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1501973
F 30 | Summer 2023 FORTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, Truman O. Anderson, MD '60, PhD— then executive dean of the University of Illinois' four medical campuses—was searching for a candidate with a rare combination of traits and talents to serve as the first head of the Department of Medicine in Peoria. Dr. Anderson reached out to Alfonse T. Masi, MD, DrPH, a gifted scholar and rising star in academic medicine with a résumé that included a medical degree from Columbia University, advanced degrees from the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health, and appointments at Johns Hopkins and the University of Tennessee College of Medicine. The executive dean used all of his powers of persuasion to recruit Dr. Masi, noting that the physician-scientist's research would be an asset to the department and that Dr. Masi would find many opportunities to make meaningful contributions to medical science and scholarship in Peoria. A Pioneering Force in Academic Medicine Dr. Anderson's pitch was not only persuasive but prescient. Dr. Masi accepted his offer and spent the next 44 years advancing medicine in Peoria as a visionary leader, researcher, educator and clinician. During his tenure as the first head of the Department of Medicine in Peoria—which lasted from 1978 to 1985—and in the decades that followed, Dr. Masi made major contributions to research and education at the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria, which was still in its formative years. An innovative thinker and accomplished researcher, he conducted pioneering studies on the epidemiology and causation of rheumatic disease, which fundamentally altered how physicians thought of these diseases. As a professor, he mentored countless young faculty members, residents and medical students, who often attributed their later career success and lifelong interest in research to his support and guidance. As a practicing rheumatologist, he enhanced the lives of thousands of patients. Endowing a new era of innovation and discovery: Professor Emeritus Alfonse T. Masi, MD, DrPH, MPH, and Mrs. Nancy Masi The Masi Family's Gift to the Future of Medicine With a $1.2 million gift to establish the first endowed chair at the Department of Medicine in Peoria, the Masi family is building on Dr. Alfonse Masi's rich legacy in research, education and clinical care.