Drury hires founding director for new degree program

Photo courtesy LinkedIn

Kathleen Flach starts June 15.

Drury University hired the founding director of its new physician assistant program.

Kathleen Flach is scheduled to start June 15, according to a news release. She'll work over the next two years to design and implement Drury's first health-related master's degree before it launches in fall 2023.

"The university’s excitement for the program, and the innovation currently happening at Drury, provides an exceptional opportunity to create a student-centered program infused with resources already present on campus," Flach said in the release.

Flach's career has comprised a decade of experience in academia and 14 years as a health care provider. She previously served as the founding academic director of the University of South Florida-Tampa's PA program.

As a health care provider, Flach provided emergency care for more than 120,000 emergency department visits and served as a physician assistant in adult and pediatric care. She was a founding participant in the creation of a medical clinic in Rang, Haiti, where she continues to train medical personnel, according to the release.

“Drury is fortunate to have a founding program director who has extensive experience in both PA education and medical practice,” Provost Beth Harville said in the release.

Officials say the new Drury PA program will be able to be completed in 27 months. The first cohort of students likely will be about 30 people, said Drury spokesperson Mike Brothers.

Brothers declined to disclose Flach's salary.