Growing up in New York City, Kehinde Odedosu, M.D., was so motivated by her high school teacher’s passion for science that it led her to pursue a career as a physician and educator.

“Her early mentorship served as a catalyst,” Dr. Odedosu, Associate Professor of Internal Medicine in the Division of Hospital Medicine, said of her teacher. “I was also inspired by her commitment to education, which was evident in her actions and willingness to go the extra mile.”

Dr. Odedosu, a member of the UTSW faculty since 2010 who has balanced a career as a doctor with her dedication to helping students achieve their goals, was recently appointed Assistant Dean for Student Affairs. The position will allow her to expand on her goal to see medical students achieve their own dreams of becoming successful physicians.

“I have dedicated my career to ensuring that the medical students and residents I train are not only equipped with the knowledge and skills to provide effective and efficient patient care to our diverse patient population, but also understand the intricacies of practicing medicine,” she said. “I stress the importance of how addressing both the disease and the effects of an illness on the patient are crucial to successful treatment.”

In January, Dr. Odedosu began her new duties, which include helping to recruit, retain, and support medical students; counseling and mentoring; developing health career pipeline programs; and advising undergraduate students on medical school admission policies.

She joined UT Southwestern as a hospitalist in the Department of Internal Medicine. Since then, Dr. Odedosu has led many educational and clinical efforts, including serving as the Medical Director for the Parkland Hospital Medicine Consultation and Co-Management Service. She was promoted to co-Director of the Internal Medicine Clerkship after serving as the Subinternship Director.

Nationally, Dr. Odedosu is Vice Chair of the Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine (CDIM) Program Planning Committee. Over the last three years, she has also served as one of the Directors for the CDIM course New Clinical Course Leaders.

In addition to New York City, Dr. Odedosu also was raised in Lagos, Nigeria. She earned her bachelor’s degree in integrative neuroscience and Spanish from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Binghamton. She completed medical school at SUNY at Stony Brook and her internal medicine residency training at New York University (NYU). Dr. Odedosu worked as a hospitalist at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center (now Mount Sinai West).

Dr. Odedosu said she looks forward to supporting students going forward. “Mentorship and coaching has been a huge part of my career, and that will continue to be an integral part of my new role,” she said.