A Richmond Star

Michelle Whitehurst-Cook, M.D., associate dean of admissions in the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, has been named a 2009 Richmond Star by the Richmond Area Council of American Business Women’s Association for her outstanding achievements in medicine.
 
Whitehurst-Cook will be recognized along with outstanding women in the fields of corporate management, small business management, education and media during the ‘Light Up the Night with Stars’ event at the Sheraton Richmond West Hotel on Friday, Sept. 11. The event is part of the celebration of American Business Women’s Day in Richmond.

Whitehurst-Cook has served on the School of Medicine faculty since 1993 as associate professor of family medicine. She also has held roles as director of predoctoral programs in the Department of Family Medicine, chair of the VCU School of Medicine Admissions Committee and co-physician coordinator for the Foundations of Clinical Medicine required course for first and second year medical students. Whitehurst-Cook also directs the Inner City/Rural Preceptorship Program, which provides educational experiences for medical students interested in providing care to the underserved.

Among many honors, Whitehurst-Cook has received the VCU Women in Medicine Professional Achievement Award and the VCU School of Medicine Educational Innovation and Educational Research Award. She also was a 2004-2005 fellow in the national Hedwig van Ameringen Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine Program for Women.

Whitehurst-Cook earned her medical degree from the VCU School of Medicine and her undergraduate degree from the College of William and Mary. She completed residency training at the VCU Riverside Family Practice Residency Program in Newport News and practiced rural medicine for 11 years in nearby Providence Forge.