Maupin, John E., Jr.(1946–) - College president, dentist, Education, Chronology

John E. Maupin Jr. became the ninth president of Meharry Medical College in 1994. He was the first alumnus and the second dentist to lead the historically black academic health center, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Before arriving at Meharry, Dr. Maupin was executive vice president of the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia from 1989 to 1994. In 2006, Maupin resigned as president and chief executive officer of Meharry Medical College, returning to the Morehouse School of Medicine as president.

Immediately prior to joining Meharry, Maupin was chief executive officer, from 1987 to 1989, of Southside Healthcare, Inc., a federally qualified community health center in Georgia’s capital city. From 1981 to 1987, Maupin served the Baltimore City Health Department, first as assistant commissioner of clinical services and finally as deputy commissioner of health. Prior to the municipal appointments, he established the first dental clinic at the West Baltimore Community Health Center while serving there as dental director.

Education

Born in Los Angeles on October 28, 1946, to a prominent dentist and a revered public school educator, John E. Maupin Jr. completed his secondary education in Los Angeles and then pursued undergraduate training at San Jose State College. He earned the D.D.S. at Meharry’s School of Dentistry and, subsequently, was awarded an M.B.A. in 1979 at Loyola College in Baltimore.

Having succeeded in dentistry, academia, community public health, and business, Maupin acknowledged that Meharry Medical College changed his life. He accepted the 1994 mandate to nurse his ailing alma mater back to health. A glance backwards offers context for the renaissance sparked by John Maupin’s passion for the institution that took him in and thoroughly prepared him for what became his true calling.

Chronology

1946

Born in Los Angeles on October 28

1968

Ends undergraduate experience at San Jose State College

1972

Graduates from Meharry Medical College with a D.D.S. degree

1979

Earns M.B.A. from Loyola College in Baltimore

1980

Establishes himself as oral health professional in Baltimore

1989

Appointed executive vice president of Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta

1994

Appointed president of Meharry Medical College

2001

Leads celebration of Meharry Medical College’s 125th anniversary

2006

Resigns as president and chief executive officer of Meharry Medical College; becomes president of Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta

Mainstream professional schools did not interest John Maupin of South Central Los Angeles. But Meharry Medical College took a chance on this underachieving campus activist. Spotting real potential beyond a so-so undergraduate transcript, Meharry accepted Maupin and immersed him in its culture of compassion, competence, camaraderie, and intellectual rigor.

A mature and focused John Maupin graduated from Meharry on time—in 1972—and then completed a general dentistry residency at Provident Hospital in Baltimore. He maintained a successful dental practice in that city for a few years but then decided to enter health care management. He took on leadership positions at community-based health care facilities and municipal public health agencies in Baltimore and in the U.S. Army Dental Corps in Washington, D.C.

Maupin moved to Atlanta and worked in injury prevention and health promotion, a high-profile job which brought him to the attention of faculty that once tutored him and college trustees who had been tracking his postgraduate progress. He excelled at Atlanta’s Southside Healthcare, Inc., the community health center. His performance at the Morehouse School of Medicine was exemplary; in fact, he flourished under Louis Sullivan’s leadership.

Moreover, he constantly sought the advice of three seasoned educators known for spotting and nurturing fast-track talent: Johnnetta Cole, then-president of Spelman College and later chief executive of Bennett College for Women in Greensboro, North Carolina; Thomas Cole, former president of Clark-Atlanta University; and Dean Emeritus Joe Henry of Howard University’s College of Dentistry.

Meharry sought its distinguished alumnus when its academic and fiscal vital signs pleaded for life support. Its trustees turned to a reluctant John Maupin. Joe Henry reminded Maupin of the rare opportunity Meharry was offering. After some thought, Maupin agreed to be a candidate. The trustees determined his strengths matched the college’s needs going forward, and they were correct.