Guest ContributorArizona State University made two significant announcements on Wednesday: The university’s new medical school has received preliminary accreditation from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), and it secured a nine-figure naming gift from Arizona physician and entrepreneur Dr. John Shufeldt.
The preliminary accreditation clears the way for ASU to recruit its inaugural class of students for fall 2026 and begins in earnest its efforts to transform health education and address Arizona’s growing need for medical professionals.
The naming gift is the second-largest in the university’s history. The school will be named the John Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering.
“While accreditation was expected, it’s a milestone achieved through the tireless work of our team,” ASU President Michael Crow said. “Dr. John Shufeldt embodies the kind of innovator we aim to produce in our graduates — a physician, entrepreneur and forward-thinking leader contributing his time, talent and resources to help advance the future of health care.”
Shufeldt, an emergency medicine physician who founded NextCare in 1993 and grew it from a single clinic into a 60-location network across six states, said the new school will prepare physicians who can bridge the worlds of medicine, business, and technology.
“For decades I’ve worked at the intersection of business, law and medicine,” Shufeldt said. “What we need are physicians who can innovate and lead with compassion. That’s exactly what this school will produce.”
Arizona Chamber of Commerce & Industry President and CEO Danny Seiden applauded the announcements, calling them “a win for Arizona’s economy and for the future of health care in our state.”
“ASU’s medical school represents exactly the kind of future-focused innovation that keeps Arizona competitive,” Seiden said. “By combining medicine, engineering, and entrepreneurship, and by attracting world-class talent like Dr. Shufeldt, ASU is strengthening the state’s health workforce and ensuring Arizona remains a leader in cutting-edge medical education and research. These announcements are game-changers for Arizona’s health-care workforce and innovation ecosystem.”
Students at the Shufeldt School of Medicine and Medical Engineering will earn two degrees in four years — a Doctor of Medicine and a Master of Science in Medical Engineering — through a curriculum that integrates engineering, data science, and the humanities. Its primary clinical affiliate will be HonorHealth, providing students hands-on experience in patient care and clinical innovation.
The school’s founding dean, Dr. Holly Lisanby, called the gift “transformative,” noting that students will be “dually trained from day one in medical and engineering disciplines, learning alongside experts from clinical, engineering, and entrepreneurial fields.” The new medical school is part of ASU Health, a system that includes the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, the College of Health Solutions, the new School of Technology for Public Health, and the ASU Health Observatory.
Cover image courtesy ASU News, social media
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