A towering figure in American medicine with Demopolis roots is lending his stature and expertise to the groundbreaking Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences (ASHS).

Dr. Selwyn M. Vickers, M.D., FACS, has agreed to serve as Special Advisor to ASHS and its supporting Foundation as the residential specialty high school starts its one-year countdown to opening. The school’s mission is to help meet the demand for medical professionals in Alabama with uniquely prepared students.

Since 2022, Vickers has served as president and CEO of the prestigious Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) in New York, recognized as one of the world’s leading cancer centers.

“This landmark relationship brings one of the world’s most accomplished medical leaders back to his roots and marks a new chapter in ASHS’s mission to inspire and train the next generation of healthcare professionals,” said Governor Kay Ivey, who has championed creation of ASHS as the fourth in a network of free, public state-supported residential specialty high schools.

Born in Demopolis and raised in Tuscaloosa and Huntsville, Vickers becomes a guiding force for ASHS after decades at the forefront of medicine. As a physician, Vickers’ career has been distinguished by the pursuit of cures for cancer and a commitment to improving health outcomes for all. Vickers earned international recognition for pioneering new treatments for pancreatic cancer and for his research into cancer health disparities.

He made his mark at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) as senior vice president for medicine and dean of the Heersink School of Medicine, as well as CEO of the UAB Health System and the UAB/Ascension St. Vincent’s Alliance. Under his leadership, UAB bolstered its reputation for clinical excellence, groundbreaking research and equity in delivery of patient care.

“Working with ASHS brings together my lifelong connection to Alabama with my passion for elevating healthcare education and mentoring the future generations of providers and researchers,” said Vickers. “Nothing is more important to quality of life than access to skilled, compassionate healthcare, and I’m excited about helping ASHS change lives in Alabama, both of its students and those they will serve.”

Vickers’ undergraduate and medical education, as well as his initial surgical training, took place at Johns Hopkins University, and he completed postgraduate fellowships with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and at Oxford University in the U.K., where he did his international surgical training.

He and his wife, Janice, also an Alabama native, married in 1988 and have four children.

“We’re excited that Dr. Vickers will be partnering with us,” said Kirk Stephens, chairman of the board of the ASHS Foundation. “Having him on board promises to enrich our school, uplift our campus community, and extend our impact across Alabama and beyond.”

This fall shapes up to be an eventful one for ASHS, with announcements of career pathway options that will launch recruitment of students and faculty, and formal groundbreaking for construction of its 10-acre residential campus in Demopolis.

The school is scheduled for a soft launch next August with a freshman class of up to 100 students studying and living at their own separate mini-campus on the grounds of the University of West Alabama in Livingston while the first phase of the Demopolis campus is being constructed.

Major initial funding for the school comes from Bloomberg Philanthropies and the state of Alabama.