Joyce deJong is the new dean of the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine. An alumna of the college, she began her appointment on Feb. 5, 2024.

A nationally recognized forensic pathologist, deJong (pronounced DEE-young) was a professor and founding chair of the Department of Pathology at the Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, or WMed. She is also the medical examiner for 12 counties in Michigan, overseeing multiple deputy medical examiners and nearly 100 medical examiner investigators.  

She is a graduate of the MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine and was an associate professor in the MSU Department of Neurology and Ophthalmology and pathology division while she was the medical director for forensic pathology at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing. 

Conversation Highlights:

(0:30) – What’s your background, and what are some career highlights?

(2:39) – Did you initially think you would pursue law as a career?

(4:20) – Why did you choose to attend MSU for medical school?

(6:04) – What’s the difference between a DO and an MD?

(9:46) – What made you want to be dean of your alma mater?

(11:40) – What are some of your goals for the college?

(13:51) – Describe the evolving mission of the college.

(15:21) – What’s the state of the profession your students are entering?

(16:41) – What are challenges and opportunities ahead for the college and MSU?

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