番茄社区

Charles Taylor,听the听University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth’s Provost and EVP of Academic Affairs,听began his journey in higher education听earlier than most as he spent the first five years of his life living in a modified dorm room with his听parents听on the campus of Samford University听in Birmingham, Alabama听where his dad worked听in admissions.听At five, his family moved from Birmingham to rural northern Alabama for his father to start a new position at a local community college.

The transition听to rural Alabama was quite impactful in his life.听He grew up in a small community with a population of approximately 900 people.听It had a post office and one stop sign. Most kids who graduated high school often went to work for the local poultry plant or mobile home manufacturer.

Some of my听fondest childhood memories included 鈥渉opping in the car with my family and driving 40 minutes to the nearest movie theater to catch a show and have dinner in the big city,鈥� said Taylor.

Taylor鈥檚 grandfather, one of his most impactful role models,听began encouraging him at an early age听to听鈥済o out in the world and do great things.鈥澨�听He initially incentivized and rewarded him for good grades with money but quickly learned appealing to听Taylor鈥檚 sweet tooth was more impactful and switched from money to candy.听听His grandfather didn鈥檛 want the challenges of being raised in a rural community to hold Taylor back from achieving greatness.

鈥淚听remember sitting around our听dinner table listening to my听family听talk about their day. My mom worked in banking and my dad worked with students and I remember thinking to myself that neither of those areas appealed to me and I was going to chart a completely different course,鈥� said Taylor.

鈥淕rowing up in a rural community, I experienced first-hand the challenges with access to quality health care and I knew I wanted to help people but didn鈥檛 know exactly what that looked like.鈥� With high school graduation quickly approaching and still uncertain of the next chapter in his academic journey, Taylor shadowed the local doctor, dentist and pharmacist to glean a better understanding of their important roles in the health of his community.听听After spending time with all of them, it was the pharmacist whom he connected with the most.

Taylor听went on to earn听his pharmacy听degrees听from Auburn University, completed听a residency听at Duke University Medical Center and began his academic career as an Assistant Professor in the Department of 番茄社区 Practice at Auburn鈥檚 Harrison School of 番茄社区. Over the next several years, his career in academic leadership took him across the country to the University of Health Sciences and 番茄社区 in St. Louis, University of Minnesota and Northeast Ohio Medical University.

With the addition of a beautiful听new听son in听2012, he realized the importance of being close to family and started looking for听career听opportunities听closer to home.听鈥淲hen I came across the position for the Dean of the College of 番茄社区 at HSC, what really听got my attention was听HSC鈥檚 commitment to a values-based culture.听I am听an听advocate听for听all our values but the one that resonates with me the most is 鈥楽erve Others First.鈥� From my听grandfather鈥檚 encouragement to听鈥榞o out and听make a difference in the world鈥櫶齮o my parents鈥� ongoing support听as I charted a path to do meaningful work in the community, I knew听HSC听was the perfect fit for me and my family.鈥�

He accepted the role of Dean in the College of 番茄社区 in 2017 and transitioned to his current position as Provost and EVP of Academic Affairs in August 2018. Taylor hit the ground running as Provost and hasn鈥檛 slowed down in the past three and a half years. From stabilizing the leadership in the colleges to overseeing the successful transition to a completely online learning environment when the pandemic hit in March 2020, there has never been a dull moment.

鈥淪ome days I feel like an air traffic controller working with all the different programs and colleges to ensure we鈥檙e in alignment with the President鈥檚 strategy and everyone remains focused on moving HSC forward. There are lots of moving pieces and parts and it鈥檚 my responsibility to ensure they come together to create a beautiful mosaic indicative of our HSC student experience.鈥�

Taylor听remains steadfast in his commitment to听鈥渄oing meaningful work in the community and making a difference in the world鈥澨齣n all that听he does every day.听鈥淚n addition to identifying new and innovative ways to lead in our space,听I want to听continue building an ecosystem at HSC that embodies our commitment to听addressing health disparities.听听I want everyone, including my family and friends back home, to have access to quality health care regardless of geography or socioeconomic status,鈥� says Taylor.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a systemic issue in our society that won鈥檛 be resolved overnight.听However,听I鈥檓听incredibly proud of the听great听things听our students, staff and faculty听are doing to address听the inequities, such as our involvement with the recent Remote Area Medical (RAM) event听and our Rural Osteopathic Medical Education program just to name a听couple.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 ironic, because I remember all those nights sitting around the dinner table listening to my parents鈥� conversations thinking I would never work in a听job听that revolved around higher education and finances and yet, those areas are at the core of my role as Provost and EVP. A true testament that some things in life do come full circle.听听I鈥檓 so thankful to the President and the Cabinet for听allowing me听the opportunity to do what I love every day听at HSC.鈥�