University of Minnesota President Bob Bruininks announced Wednesday the positions of senior vice president for health sciences and dean of the Medical School would be combined, effective July 1. Dr. Frank Cerra, the current senior vice president for health sciences, will serve in the interim position as the University works toward identifying a new candidate for the position in 2011. âÄúI can tell you that the University of MinnesotaâÄôs Medical School remains one of the most important assets of the University,âÄù Cerra said in an e-mail to the Academic Health Center faculty obtained by the Minnesota Daily. âÄúThe public depends on the work we do to sustain the health of both families and the economy.âÄù Current Medical School Dean Deborah PowellâÄôs future in the AHC is less clear. A memo from Bruininks to the Regents also obtained by the Daily states Cerra and Powell are âÄúin discussions concerning a future administrative role for Dean Powell in the area of medical education.âÄù Bruininks calls the move âÄúa foundational step in positioning the UniversityâÄôs health sciences for success into the future.âÄù Powell and the Medical School have recently come under fire for missteps relating to a committee Powell created last year to address major flaws in the Medical SchoolâÄôs conflict of interest policies. Keep checking mndaily.com for further updates