The Hal B. Jenson, MD Dean
President and CEO
Innearlyeveryofficehe’soccupied duringan almostthree-decade journey in academic medicine, J. Adrian Tyndall, MD, MPH, FACEP, keeps the same chess board on display.
It’sa collector’s item – the pieces on each siderepresentingMajor League Baseball’s American and National leagues – that was given to him by his best friend’s father. The set is an ode to Dr. Tyndall’s love of chess and sports, and over the years he says it has served as a conversation starter, a way to connect.
In yearspast, heoften kept running games going – contests of “oneplaya day” – with different faculty and staff at the institutions where he has worked.
“The chess board serves as a constant reminder to always look ahead,” Dr. Tyndall explained. “Life is like a chess game– you’reonly as successful as your ability toanticipateseveral moves in advance. These strategic lessons not only influence the decisions I make in my professional life, but even more so at the institutional level.Ultimately, whatinspires me most is fostering relationships and collaborations, and helping people discover and pursue their passions so they can contribute meaningfully.”
That outlook is at the forefront for Dr. Tyndall as heofficiallytakes the helmtodayasthe Hal B. Jenson, MD Dean, President, and CEOof WMU Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine (91̽)following more than four years at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta where he served as dean and executive vice president for health services, andin his prior roles as Interim Dean and Associate Vice Presidentat the University of Florida andUF Health.
At this stage in his career, Dr. Tyndall reflected that the opportunity to lead an institution like91̽– one that places health equity at its core through innovation in medical practice and education– not only exciteshim, butalso resonates deeply with his values as a physician, leader, and educator. He described leading91̽, where health equity is a foundational principle, as a rare and meaningful privilege. With all the essential elements in place, Dr. Tyndall believes91̽is poised to make a lasting, positive impact on the health of communities across Southwest Michigan. The pursuit of health equity – ensuringthat everyone has the chance to be as healthy as possible– has guided him throughout his medical career.
Dr. Tyndall, 56, traces his roots to Guyana on the northern coast of South America. He spent his formative years in the Washington, D.C. area, graduating from Walt Whitman High School.As the middle child and onlyson, hefondly recalls his mother, an English teacher and passionate music enthusiast, often playing cassette recordings of “The Chopin I Love” performed by Arthur Rubinstein, the renowned Polish-American virtuosopianist and oneof the greatest interpreters of Chopin in the 20thcentury. The soothing melodies became a cherished part of his bedtime routine, instilling in him a lifelong appreciation for music.
Dr. Tyndall began taking piano lessons at the age of five, minored in piano performance in college, and has continued to take piano lessons on and off for the last 35 years. Over the years, he has taken pride in havingretainedthe talent of perfect pitch. His love of music, especially as an amateur pianist, has provided him with a life balance and a refuge from the rigors of his work. It has alsofueled his passion for the emergingmovement of the arts in medicine and health.For example, at the University of Florida, where Dr. Tyndall served as the chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine for more than a decade, he championed a program in which musicians from the UF Health Shands Arts in Medicine program visited the hospitalregularlyto play for patients in their rooms as a way to harness the healing power of live music.
“I’ve always looked for ways to blend medicine with music,” Dr. Tyndall said. “The program made a meaningful difference for patients, staff, and musicians alike.”
Recently, Dr. Tyndall joined the inaugural working group of theNeuroArtsAcademic Network (NAN), a global initiative advancing the science of arts in health. NAN, launched through a partnership between Johns Hopkins’ International Arts + Mind Lab and the Aspen Institute, unites leading universities,institutionsand communityorganizationstoshapeNeuroArtsthrough research, education, and policy.
Dr. Tyndall recounted his early childhood experiences with musicwhen he performed a classical work from the Rubinstein album at the Atlanta Symphony Hall as part of a kick-off celebration of a new Arts and Medicine Initiative inAtlanta, Georgia, in October 2025.
“Everyone looks for some space where there’s capacity for resilience, and space where you can retreat and recover and refresh,” he said. “For me, that’s partly music.”
Dr. Tyndall’s early years were shaped by a deep curiosity and a passion for both music and science, inspired by his love of science fiction novels and his dreams of pursuing careers in both fields.Yet,it was the profound impact of personal loss thatultimately steeredhim toward medicine. As a young boy, hewitnesseda close relativeexperiencewhat he later understood to be a massive and immediately fatal intracerebral bleed–an event he can still vividly recall, tracing its clinical progression in detail. Then, at age 16, while a freshman at George Washington University, he endured the loss of his grandmother after months in a coma, following a catastrophic medical error at a hospital in Washington, D.C. Reflecting on these tragedies, Dr. Tyndall remembers being compelled to intervene, wishing he could help, but also grappling with a powerful sense of helplessness.These formative experiences propelled him to pursue medical school, determined to make a difference for others facing similar moments of crisis.
After he earned his MD degree from the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Dr. Tyndall began his Emergency Medicine residency training atthe University of MarylandMedical Systems where heserved as chief resident.His decision to pursue Emergency Medicine, he said, stemmed from the experiences and relationships he gained when he worked as a nursing assistant and EMT in the emergency room at the GWU Hospital.
Reflecting on his formative years, Dr. Tyndall recalls the profound impact of his time in the emergency room at GWU, where hewitnessedthe extraordinary passion, skill, and humanity of the staff.
“Their ability to cope admirably under theseverest ofcircumstances, to handle human tragedy with grace, and always show compassion and empathy at every instance – I wanted to bethat,” he shared.
The GWU Emergency Department not only introduced him to academic emergency medicine and clinical teaching but also taught him invaluable life lessons during his late teens. Pivotal to his decision to pursue academic emergency medicine were his experiences at the University of Maryland and theclosementorship of the late Dr. Elizabeth Tso, along withmany faculty atthe University of Maryland Medical Center’s Department of Emergency Medicine. Their guidance and leadership helped shape his career and solidify his commitment to the field.
Over the spanofhistime in medicine,Dr. Tyndall hasestablishedhimself as a nationally recognized academic leader, educator, and physician executive whose careerincludesacademic medicine,clinical practice, transformative contributions to medical education, health system leadership, andacademicemergency medicine. His career path has included academic appointments at State University of New York Health Science Center at Brooklyn School of Medicine, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, and New York University School of Medicine. He recalled early in his career his time as a residency program director in New York when he made what he called a “fateful decision” to leave academic medicine for community practice with the hope that the move would allow him to spend more time withfamily.
Time away from academic medicine, Dr. Tyndall said, helped make him a betterphysician and leader.
“That time away clarified for me where my passions truly lay, which was in teaching, in being part of the academic environment, in being part of that environment of inquiry,” Dr. Tyndall said.
He servedaschair of the Department of Emergency Medicineat the University of Floridaandwaslaterappointed interim dean of the UF College ofMedicine,leadingthe college through the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
He left Gainesville in 2021 to become theexecutive vice president for health servicesand deanatMorehouse School of Medicine.
When he thinks about the success he has had during his career, Dr. Tyndall creditshis family forserving as his inspiration while also helping keep him grounded. He also reflectsfondly on the wisdom of hisparents, their focus on education, and theferventChristian faith of hismaternalgrandmother that served as the foundations and guides for his life.
“The most significant leadership lessons I learned came fromobservingmy mother,” Dr. Tyndall said. “She was gifted and brilliant in the art of disarmament and negotiation andI find her lessonsuseful in how I navigatemy way through the twists and turns of leadership … I have those sets of values and that faith to lean into and guide me.”
Dr. Tyndall’sselectionas the next dean, president, and CEO of91̽came in Novemberfollowinga national search. As he begins to chart his path at the medical school, Dr. Tyndall had a simple response when asked what excites him most about his new role.
“Meetingand learning frompeople,” he said.“It’s how I willget toknowthe91̽community and Kalamazoo.”
In his first100 days, Dr. Tyndall said he plans to connect withnumerousstakeholders at the medical school, including his executive team, faculty, students, residents,fellows,staff, and community partners. He wants to listen, ask questions, learn, and build relationships. And he said he will approach the work ahead of him with a strong focus on fueling the momentum to help achieve91̽’svision of health equity for all in the region.
“I view my role as one in which I help to integrate a vision and mold consensus around that vision,” Dr. Tyndall said. “Part of that, for me, is leading with humility, whichmeans that there is a sense that I can absolutely be approached by anyone who has a perspective or insight because they understand my willingness to listen.”
Dr. Tyndallsaidhe willwork to forge strong relationships in the community, including those with the medical school’s three collaborators – 91̽ University, Beacon Health, and Bronson Healthcare.
“I believe there’s significant potential for community engagement that must be realized,” Dr. Tyndall said. “We have an extraordinary opportunity to elevate the entire community in terms of health, health outcomes, impactful research, education, and workforce development. There are remarkable elements within the community that, when brought together, can help us fulfill our vision. Itruly enjoyimmersing myself in this collaborative process to make that happen.”
Dr. Tyndall began making connections with some community partners shortly after hisselectionas the dean, president, and CEO. In December, he traveled toFord Field in Detroitand watched the WMU Broncos bring home a MAC Championship and got the chance to meet members of the WMU Board of Trustees, as well as local government officials.
Now thathe’sofficially arrived in Kalamazoo, Dr. Tyndall has amassed a to-dolist foroutside of the office to familiarize himself with the community and region. He and hisfamilyhave plans to visit Lake Michigan to experience some of the lakeshore’s beautiful beaches and sand dunes for the first time.They’realso looking forward to connecting more with close relatives in Chicago and Dayton, Ohio.An avid cyclist, he also wants to hit the Kal-Haven Trail.
“I’m excited to be here, to be a part of this community, and do the work,” he said.“Embracing this notion of what health equity means for Southwest Michiganisreally importanttomeand I know this is work we can do.”
And, as that work beginstoday, thechess board and its pieces will be with Dr. Tyndall as hetakes his seatin his office at the W.E. Upjohn M.D. Campusfor the first time as dean.