MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine Annual Dr. William G. Anderson Lecture Series gives the community opportunities to interact with multicultural leaders from education, business, industry, entertainment and government. For 25 years, this series has featured living icons of the American Civil Rights Movement.

About Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O.

Barbara Ross-Lee, DO, served as President/CEO of the Proposed MDCOM at Morgan State University (2022-2024). She also served as Vice President for Health Sciences and Medical Affairs (VPHSMA) at NYIT from 2001 until 2017. Additionally, during that time, she served as interim Dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine and interim Dean of the School of Health Professions. In November 2014, Dr. Ross-Lee became the Inaugural Dean for NYITCOM at A-State, where she also served as CEO of its Academic Health Centers and President of its Faculty Practice Plan while continuing service as VPHSMA of NYIT. Dr. Ross-Lee is a nationally recognized expert on health policy issues and serves as an advisor on primary care, medical education, minority health, women's health, and rural health care issues on the federal and state levels. She is the founding director of the AOA Health Policy Fellowship Program, which prepares mid-career osteopathic physicians for leadership roles in health care. Dr. Ross is also the Founding Director of the Training in Policy Studies (TIPS) for Osteopathic resident physicians. 

Dr. Ross-Lee is the first African American woman to serve as dean of a United States medical school (Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, 1993 - 2001). She is also the first osteopathic physician to participate in the Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship. Dr. Ross-Lee served as a commissioned officer in the United States Naval Reserves Medical Corps, and Officer in Charge (OIC) of the PRIMUS Unit for Michigan. She achieved the rank of Captain. She lectures both nationally and internationally and has published numerous scholarly articles on a variety of medical and healthcare issues. She is the recipient of ten honorary degrees and many national awards. Most recently, the ACGME Annual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Award was named the Barbara Ross-Lee, DO DEI Award in her honor. She has consulted and participated in the development of five new Osteopathic schools.

Ross-Lee has served as: Chair of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) Council of Presidents; Chair of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) Council on Pre-doctoral Education (pre-dating COCA); and Chair of the Board of the Association of Academic Health Centers (AAHC).  In 1993, Dr. Ross Lee was appointed by the Institute of Medicine as a member of the Planning Committee on the Future of Primary Care and in 2012, Dr. Ross-Lee was appointed by the Institute of Medicine to serve as a member of the Consensus Committee on Governance and Financing of Graduate Medical Education which was responsible for recommending reforms to the GME system.  Dr. Ross-Lee assumed the position of President of the American Osteopathic Foundation in January 2022 and served as Immediate Past President of the AOF January 2023 thru December 2023.