The Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Professor Michael F. Collins received an honorary doctorate at the University of Crete School of Medicine for his contributions to the advancement of medical education and public health. During the ceremony the notable achievements of the honoree were presented, focusing on his significant contributions to advancing medical education and public health, as well as the organization and administration of the Medical School and affiliated research centers at the University of Massachusetts and his contribution in promoting fundamental research in medicine, which led to this year’s Nobel Prize in Medicine being awarded to Professor Victor Ambros of the T.H. Chan School of Medicine at the University of Massachusetts for his discovery of micro-RNA. The ceremony concluded with the honoree’s speech, in which he warmly thanked the University of Crete and the Medical School for the honor bestowed upon him. In his speech, titled “A Leadership Perspective on Academic Medicine: Its Privilege, Purpose and Promise,” he analyzed the importance of leadership and ethics in academic medicine and the role it plays in the advancement of healthcare and research.

This event highlighted the continuation of a long collaboration between the University of Massachusetts Medical School and the Medical School of the University of Crete, which has offered internship and research opportunities for students of the University of Crete at UMASS Medical School. This collaboration will be further strengthened and expanded in the immediate future, offering opportunities to our students.