Edward J. Stemmler, 93, from Philadelphia, Dean Emeritus Former executive vice president of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, its medical center, former professor of medicine, chief executive of Penn and other organizations, honorary directors, trustees, mentors, and veterans, on Tuesday, January 3. Died of cardiac arrest in Kendall, Longwood Retirement Community of Kennett Square.
Dr. Stemmler became a lecturer at the Penn University School of Medicine in 1964 and retired in 1994 as vice president of the Washington-based Association of American Medical Colleges. During that time, he was Penn’s first Robert G. Dunlop Professor of Medicine from 1981 until he was 1988; served as his vice president.
He was appointed dean emeritus in 1989, and upon his retirement from Penn College in 1990, the school’s medical education building near 33rd Street and Spruce Street was renamed Edward J. Stemler Hall. “He promoted a compassionate approach to the educational process,” said a former Penn colleague online tributes“He showed by deeds that kindness brings great rewards.”
His family said that Dr. Stemmler “advocated for educational freedom and the preservation of academic values in an era of medical commercialization. It permeated the
As Dean of Penn’s College of Medicine, Dr. Stemler enacted innovative academic and administrative procedures, championed biomedical research, and added or improved many facilities throughout the campus. He received a Lifetime Achievement and Distinguished Alumni Award from the Penn University School of Medicine and spent much of his tenure focused on making his medical career more attractive.
“American youth are paying attention to the values of life outside the workplace,” he wrote in a 1987 editorial for The Inquirer. “The desire to participate in family and social life has fueled the growth of group practices to relieve undue burden. Medical educators are aware of such trends and have adapted educational programs to be sensitive to them. must be considered.”
In the 1960s, he also served as department director of the University of Pennsylvania Hospital and the city’s Veterans Administration Medical Center. In the early 1970s, he served as the hospital’s deputy director and later in charge of student affairs.
Away from Penn, Dr. Stemler was past president of the American Society of Clinical Climatology and honorary treasurer of the American College of Physicians. He is an Honorary Trustee of the College and has served on more than 10 Boards and Advisory Committees.
He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges and the National Board of Medical Examiners, and in 2000 the NBME renamed its Medical Education and Research Fund the Edward J. Stemmler Fund.
Former students and colleagues flooded online tributes There are memories that characterize Dr. Stemmler as a “special gentleman” and “role model” and honor his “rich life of service” and “proud legacy.” One former student concluded:
Born February 15, 1929, Edward Joseph Stemmler grew up in northeast Philadelphia and graduated from LaSalle College High School. He received his bachelor’s degree from LaSalle College (now LaSalle University) in 1950, was drafted, and in 1952 was decorated as a Sergeant First Class in the Intelligence Corps of the Korean Chemical Corps.
After working in the Army as an auto parts salesman, he was admitted to Penn University’s medical school in 1956, graduating in 1960. He completed an internship, a residency, and two of his fellowships at Penn University, and was promoted from instructor to professor in 1974.
He met University of Pennsylvania student Joan Coster on a blind date and married in 1958. The two had daughters Beth, Peggy, Kathy, Joan, and son Ed, who lived in Edon and Merrion. In the 1990s, while he was working for the Association of American Medical Colleges in Washington, they moved to Georgetown, then lived in Virginia.
His family described Dr. Stemler as “a gadget man, a handyman, a joke lover, a movie buff, a biography reader, and a doctor with an interest and love for people.” He loved fishing in New Hampshire, walking in the woods of Virginia, and solving his New York Times crossword puzzles with his wife.
He chased the Eagles, played tennis, and died in his wife’s arms. “He always said he was the lucky kid in northeastern Philadelphia,” said his daughter Kathy. “But he had a huge impact on people. He loved his job, he loved his family. People felt they were listening to him.”
In addition to his wife and children, Dr. Stemmler has five grandchildren and other relatives. Two sisters and his one brother died earlier.
A celebration of his life was held on February 11th.
You can make a donation in his name Resident or Staff Assistance Fund in kendall Crosslands Communities, PO Box 100, Kennett Square, PA. 19348, and Joan K. Stemmler and Edward J. Stemmler Endowed Scholarship University of Pennsylvania, Attn: Laura Weber, 3600 Market St., Suite 300, Philadelphia, PA 19104.
