UCSF Executive Vice Chancellor Named One of 50 Most Important African-Americans in Technology

A. Eugene Washington, MD, executive vice chancellor (EVC) and provost of the University of California, San Francisco, has been named one of the 50 Most Important African-Americans in Technology for 2006, in an annual listing selected by eAccess Corp. Eleven Californians are recognized on the list, which will be formally announced Saturday, October 28, during the Technology Transforming Today's Hot Dilemmas symposium at San Francisco's The Bayou at Mission Rock restaurant near the UCSF Mission Bay campus. John William Templeton, eAccess Corp. president and former editor of the San Jose Business Journal, said, "The impressive accomplishments of the leaders among the 50 Most Important list demonstrate the diversity dividend that their talent brings to the economy and society." Since 1999, the 50 Most Important African-Americans in Technology has highlighted the extensive involvement of African-Americans in the growth and development of the world's most cutting edge industries. With more than 400,000 workers and more than 2,000 IT businesses, information technology is the largest professional employer of African-Americans in the United States. An outgrowth of a 1998 exhibition at San Jose's Tech Museum of Innovation, the list continues to reinforce the bottom line importance of an expanded talent pool. "Although high technology is the largest professional employer of African-Americans, these overlooked overachievers tend not to have the visibility of entertainers or athletes. It is important for everyone to realize that the 400,000 black high tech workers are indispensable to our future," said Templeton. Washington, who headed the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Services before assuming the post of EVC in 2004, is an internationally renowned clinical investigator and health policy analyst who has served UCSF, the UC system, and various local, state, federal and international agencies in several capacities. He is a 1976 graduate of the UCSF School of Medicine and also studied at Howard University and both the UC Berkeley and Harvard Schools of Public Health. In 1997, Washington was elected to the prestigious Institute of Medicine, and he has received several national and international honors as well as recognition by peers and staff at UCSF. Related Links: Executive Vice Chancellor Underscores Importance of Empowering People UCSF Today, February 14, 2005 Washington Named Executive Vice Chancellor UCSF Today, December 19, 2003