About the Pediatric Rheumatology Fellowship Program

UT Southwestern's Pediatric Rheumatology Fellowship Program was established in 1978 by Dr. Chester Fink, one of the founding fathers of pediatric rheumatology. The program has been accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) since 1998.

The Division of Pediatric Rheumatology serves as a major referral center for North Texas, receiving referrals from across the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and beyond. Fellows care for a large and diverse pediatric patient population across outpatient clinics and inpatient consultation services. On average, the Division has more than 6,000 encounters annually. Fellows see the following conditions:

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis
Systemic lupus erythematosus
Juvenile dermatomyositis
Systemic and localized scleroderma
Vasculitis
Chronic nonbacterial osteomyelitis
Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome
Autoinflammatory diseases
Inflammatory uveitis

We have 36 alumni who graduated from the program. Some alumni and their achievements include:

Marilynn Punaro: Former Fellowship Program Director and Division Chief at UT Southwestern; Professor Emeritus, UT Southwestern
Virginia Pascual: Former Fellowship Program Director and Division Chief at UT Southwestern; Inaugural Director of the Drukier Institute for Children's Health Research at Weill Cornell Medicine; Professor, Weill Cornell Medical College
Alisa Gotte: Fellowship Program Director; Associate Professor, Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Ashley Cooper: Division Chief; Professor of Pediatrics, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine
Mileka Gilbert: Medical Director of Health Engagement for the Children's and Women's Integrated Center of Clinical Excellence; Senior Associate Dean for Engagement in the College of Medicine; Associate Professor, Medical University of South Carolina
Andrew Shulman: Division Chief, Pediatric Rheumatology; Assistant Professor, University of California, Irvine
Leandra Woolnough: Fellowship Program Director; Assistant Professor, University of Florida