Candidate for Sindecuse director to speak
May 22, 2002
KALAMAZOO -- Members of the Western Michigan University community and the public are invited to attend a presentation by Dr. Kenneth Forsythe, the second and final candidate being considered to head WMU's Sindecuse Health Center.
Forsythe will speak from 10 to 11 a.m. Tuesday, June 4, in the Fetzer Center. A reception in Fetzer will immediately follow the presentation.
Forsythe's career spans more than 30 years in health, medicine and business. From 1995 to 2001, he served as medical director for the University of the Pacific in Stockton, Calif., where he led a nearly $1 million operation that saw about 13,000 patients each year. It was also there that Forsythe launched a successful clinical internship program aimed at pre-medical students. Preceding his time at the University of the Pacific, Forsythe worked as a clinical instructor in sports medicine at the University of California-Davis, as an on-air health and medicine editor for several local and network television programs, and as the founder and president of ALTA Medical Systems Inc.
On the business side, Forsythe is credited with raising $7 million in the early 1990s to bail out and redevelop the Ice Capades, a hallmark in ice skating entertainment. He also has extensive experience in creating and marketing wellness programs for executives and companies, in developing sports medicine software and programs, and in consulting with large physician groups in the areas of business and patient relationships.
The other health center director finalist is Dr. Gary M. Kirk, director of the Pediatric Program at DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids, Mich. Kirk visited campus May 8. A campuswide selection committee will make recommendations regarding the candidates' strengths and any areas of concern. Dr. Diane K. Swartz, interim vice president for student affairs, will meet with the committee June 7 and expects to name the new director shortly thereafter.
For more information, contact Sharon Russell in the Division of Student Affairs at (269) 387-2174 or <sharon.russell@wmich.edu>.
Media contact: Jeanne Baron, 269 387-8400, jeanne.baron@wmich.edu