David Beckham Appointed Chief of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine

Dr. David Beckham, Professor of Medicine and Immunology and Microbiology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, has been selected as Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, effective July 1, 2023.

Dr. Beckham received his medical degree from the Baylor College of Medicine, where he also completed internal medicine residency training. He then obtained advanced training in infectious diseases at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. He subsequently completed postdoctoral research training in neurovirology under the mentorship of Kenneth Tyler. In 2007, he joined the University of Colorado faculty, advancing to Professor with Tenure in 2022.

Dr. Beckham is a leading basic and translational investigator who focuses on how viruses interact with the host immune system in the periphery and in the brain. He also studies how inflammation may trigger events related to the development of Parkinson’s disease and related neurogenerative disorders. He has been continuously funded by the NIH and VA. He has served as a standing or ad hoc member on numerous study sections and special emphasis panels for the NIH, Department of Defense, and foundations. He is currently on the editorial board for the Journal of NeuroImmunology, and previously served as Associate Editor of the Journal of Neurovirology. He is also Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Dr. Beckham has held numerous leadership roles at the University of Colorado. He directed the ID Fellowship Training Program and the ID research training program, directed the inpatient ID service, and served as section chief of neuroinfectious diseases in the Department of Neurology.  He launched a neuroinfectious diseases fellowship at the University of Colorado and also served as the founding medical director of Occupational Health. He has mentored numerous trainees at the graduate, postdoctoral, and junior faculty levels.

Dr. Beckham succeeds Dr. Trish Perl, who led the Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine from 2016 until 2021, when she transitioned to her current leadership role bridging the Department of Internal Medicine and the School of Public Health. Under Dr. Perl’s leadership, the division nearly doubled in size, experienced dramatic growth in clinical volume, attracted talented physician-scientists and clinician-educators, and expanded and enhanced the fellowship program.