Alice L. Walton School of Medicine Hires Senior Associate Dean, Undergraduate Medical Education

Alice L. Walton School of Medicine (AWSOM) has announced the hiring of Beth Nelson, MD. Beginning Sept. 15, Dr. Nelson will serve as Senior Associate Dean, Undergraduate Medical Education.

“AWSOM is thrilled to welcome Dr. Beth Nelson as our founding Senior Associate Dean, Undergraduate Medical Education,” said Yolangel Hernandez Suarez, MD, MBA, FACOG, Executive Vice Dean. “Dr. Nelson has dedicated her career to advancing undergraduate medical education. In this role, she will oversee Curricular Affairs, Student Affairs, and Admissions for the School. Her hiring completes AWSOM's Senior Associate Dean leadership team.”

Most recently, Dr. Nelson was Senior Associate Dean, Undergraduate Medical Education and a founding faculty member at Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin. She has held national positions within the American Medical Association and the Association of American Medical Colleges.

Dr. Nelson received a bachelor’s degree in economics, psychology, and managerial studies from Rice University in Houston, Texas, and an MD from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. Dr. Nelson completed an internal medicine residency at University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine and the Master Teachers Fellowship at Baylor College of Medicine.

Dr. Nelson is board-certified in Internal Medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine and has more than 20 years of experience in general internal medicine. She completed the Drexel University Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine course and received a certificate in Medical and Healthcare Management from Rice University.

About Alice L. Walton School of Medicine

Founded in 2021, Alice L. Walton School of Medicine (AWSOM) is a nonprofit, four-year MD program enhancing traditional medical education with the arts, humanities, and whole health principles. The School’s culture embraces self-care to empower students to care for their own well-being as well as their patients’. The School’s state-of-the-art medical education facility is located on the Crystal Bridges Campus, home to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and Heartland Whole Health Institute. The School has been granted preliminary accreditation status by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education and welcomed its inaugural class in July 2025.