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Christopher C. Colenda, M.D, M.P.H.

Christopher C. Colenda, M.D, M.P.H., is West Virginia University's Chancellor for Health Sciences.

Dr. Colenda earned his medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia and his M.P.H. degree from Johns Hopkins University. He is a geriatric psychiatrist.

Until October, 2009, he was the Jean and Thomas McMullin dean of medicine and vice president for clinical affairs at Texas A&M Health Science Center. His background includes faculty and administrative appointments at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University.

Dr. Colenda is a member of the Liaison Committee of Medical Education and a board member of the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical Education. He has served as a member of the Governing Council of the Section of Medical Schools of the American Medical Association and was president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. He was elected to a two-year term on the National Board of Medical Examiners Executive Board. In 2005 he was elected as a director for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has published more than 140 peer-reviewed manuscripts, abstracts and book chapters, primarily in geriatric mental health services research.

Among his recognitions and awards: American Psychiatric Association’s Jack Weinberg Award in Geriatric Psychiatry, Alumni Star for the School of Medicine of the Medical College of Virginia, Outstanding Faculty Award from the College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University, special commendation from the Council of Aging of the American Psychiatric Association and delegate to the 2005 White House Conference on Aging in Washington, D.C. Elected to the American College of Psychiatrists in 1998, he has been listed among the Best Doctors in America since 1994.