![\"UT](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/85.jpeg\" "\\"UT")
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\t\t\t\t\t\tPhoto by UTHealth Houston <\/p>\n
In a night filled with applause, laughter, and heartfelt speeches, The University of Texas System officially welcomed UTHealth Houston\u2019s new president and Alkek-Williams Distinguished Chair, Melina R. Kibbe, MD, and her husband, Marco Patti, MD, during a celebratory event Nov. 3 at the Texas Medical Center\u2019s TMC3 Collaborative Building.<\/p>\n
The evening opened with remarks from Kevin P. Eltife, chairman of The University of Texas System Board of Regents, who emphasized the board\u2019s pride in selecting Kibbe as the seventh president of UTHealth Houston and their commitment to support the university\u2019s bold new future.<\/p>\n
\u201cSelecting the right leader for UTHealth Houston, the state\u2019s largest producer of physicians and a driver of research in all areas, was critically important to our board,\u201d Eltife said. \u201cAfter an extensive review, the board unanimously selected the candidate that was head and shoulders above everybody else, Dr. Melina Kibbe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Eltife highlighted UTHealth Houston\u2019s major contributions to Texas, noting that UT System educates nearly two-thirds of the state\u2019s health care professionals and accounts for more than 60% of all research conducted in Texas.<\/p>\n
He also thanked elected officials and community partners in attendance, including Houston Mayor John Whitmire, who followed Eltife with an energetic speech about public service and collaboration.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvents, venues, and leadership like this are what make Houston such a great city,\u201d Whitmire said. \u201cWe are celebrating vision and collaboration because none of us can do it alone. Through partnership, we can accomplish anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whitmire praised the collaboration between the city of Houston and UTHealth Houston, citing the success of the university\u2019s psychiatric hospital in addressing homelessness.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best is yet to come for UTHealth Houston partnering with the city of Houston and the state of Texas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The celebration continued with remarks from John M. Zerwas, MD, chancellor of UT System, who recounted Kibbe\u2019s remarkable career trajectory, including her early days at the University of Chicago and her leadership roles at Northwestern University, the University of North Carolina, and the University of Virginia.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe can do it all,\u201d Zerwas said. \u201cFrom teaching and research to surgery, technology commercialization, and health system administration. She is uniquely equipped to lead an institution of UTHealth Houston\u2019s size, prestige, and trajectory.\u201d<\/p>\n
Applause erupted as Kibbe took the podium and expressed the deep gratitude that she and her husband share for the warm welcome they have received since Day 1 in Texas.<\/p>\n
\u201cUTHealth Houston is an extraordinary institution and home to incredibly talented, passionate, and dedicated individuals,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat drew me here was not only its reputation for excellence, but the people. Everyone I\u2019ve met is truly committed to improving lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
She thanked UT System leaders, including Chancellor Zerwas, Board of Regents Chairman Eltife, Vice Chairman Janiece Longoria, and Regents Jodie Jiles; Nolan Perez, MD; and Stuart Stedman. She also recognized Maria Pappas, chair of the UTHealth Houston Development Board; UTHealth Houston\u2019s seven deans; community leaders; and partner institutions including Memorial Hermann Health System, Harris Health System, and The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is really that close collaboration between our institutions that strengthens our shared mission to improve health and well-being across Houston, Texas, and beyond,\u201d Kibbe said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel the confidence this community has placed in me and the promise of what we\u2019re going to achieve together,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Written by: Cierra Duncan | Updated: November 07, 2025 Photo by UTHealth Houston In a night filled with…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":367649,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5130],"tags":[4345,358,3187],"class_list":{"0":"post-367648","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston","8":"tag-houston","9":"tag-texas","10":"tag-tx"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115521699417229515","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=367648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/367649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=367648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=367648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=367648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}