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CelebratING SACME's 50th Anniversary

We are thrilled to invite you to join us in celebrating a momentous milestone—our 50th anniversary! This half-century journey has been marked by remarkable achievements, cherished friendships, and unwavering support from dedicated members like you. Your commitment has shaped our organization and propelled it forward through the years.

As we reflect on our legacy, we warmly invite you to share your treasured memories, photos, and stories that highlight the spirit and history of our society. We will add them to the slideshow below and some special presentations throughout the year.

Stay tuned as we announce exciting educational programs as part of this year-long celebration. Let’s honor our past and look to a future filled with continued growth for the SACME community. 


Save the Dates for #SACME50 - March 22-25, 2026 in Lexington, Kentucky!

Contribute to the 50th Anniversary Donation Campaign 





Do you have some memories from past SACME events to share?

Maybe you discovered an old issue of Intercom? We'd love to showcase a walk down memory lane at this special anniversary meeting. Please use the link below to share photos, documents, or a special memory to be included in our celebration of SACME history!

Share Your SACME Memories 


Celebrating the Decades
 Virtual Journal Club

1970s - May 5, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET 

1980s - July 21, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

1990s - Sept 29, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

2000s - Nov 17, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

2010s - Jan 26, 2026 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

2020s - Mar 2, 2026 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

SACME PRESIDENTS

1976 Phil R. Manning, MD; University of Southern California

1977 Phil R. Manning, MD; University of Southern California

1978 Robert C. Combs, MD; University of California, Irvine

1979 Gail Bank, PhD; Wayne State University

1980 Malcolm Watts, MD; University of California, San Francisco

1981 Richard M. Caplan, MD; University of Iowa

1982 George J. Race, MD; University of Texas, Dallas

1983 Gerald H. Escovitz, MD; Medical College of Pennsylvania

1984 Oscar A. Thorup, MD; University of Virginia

1985 Julian S. Reinschmidt, MD; Oregon Health Sciences University

1986 Harold A. Paul, MD; Rush Medical College

1987 Dennis K. Wentz, MD; Vanderbilt University

1988 D. Dale Dauphinee, MD; McGill University

1989 Robert J. Cullen, PhD; Case Western Reserve University

1990 James C. Leist, EdD; Bowman Gray School of Medicine

1991 Jack L. Mason, PhD; University of Maryland

1992 Martin P. Kantrowitz, MD; University of New Mexico

1993 R. Van Harrison, PhD; University of Michigan

1994 George Smith, MD; University of Alabama

1995 Gloria Allington, MSEd; University of Miami

1996 William E. Easterling, Jr., MD; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

1997 David Davis, MD; University of Toronto

1998 Meryl H. Haber, MD; Rush Presbyterian, St. Lukes Medical Center

1999 John T. Parboosingh, MD; University of Ottawa

2000 Paul J. Lambiase; University of Rochester

2001 Barbara E. Barnes, MD; University of Pittsburgh

2002 John R. Kues, PhD; University of Cincinnati

2003 Nancy Davis, PhD; American Academy of Family Physicians

2004 Craig M. Campbell, MD; Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

2005 Martyn O. Hotvedt, PhD

2006 Michael Fordis, MD; Baylor College of Medicine

2007 Jocelyn Lockyer, PhD; University of Calgary

2008 Melinda Steele, MEd; Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center

2009 Lois Colburn; University of Nebraska Medical Center

2010 Todd Dorman, MD; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

2011 Gabrielle Kane, MB, EdD, FRCPC; University of Washington School of Medicine

2012 Pam McFadden, University of North Texas Health Science Center

Gordon West, PhD; Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower

2013 Deborah Samuel, MBA; American Academy of Pediatrics

2014 Ginny Jacobs, M.Ed., MLS, CHCP; University of Minnesota Medical School

2015 Mary Turco, EdD; Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth

2016–2017 Ajit Sachdeva, MD, FACS, FRCSE, FSACME; American College of Surgeons

2018–2019 William Rayburn, MD, MBA, FSACME; Medical University of South Carolina

2020–2021 Betsy Williams, PhD, MPH, FSACME; University of Kansas School of Medicine

2022–2023 David Wiljer, PhD; University of Toronto

2024–2025 Kimberly D. Northrip, MD, MPH; University of Kentucky Healthcare CE Central

2025-2026  Linda Caples, PhD; Medical College of Wisconsin


SACME Through the years

  • 1976 - Beginnings

    SACME established on April 2 as the Society of Medical College Directors of Continuing Medical Education (SMCDCME)

    1976

  • 1981

    First issue of Möbius published

    First Survey of Society members (Richard L. Moore)

    1981

  • 1982

    First call for research papers (Nancy Bennett)

    1982

  • 1984

    Support of the Research and Development Resource Base in CME by the Society (Dave Davis)

    RICME I, Research in Continuing Medical Education (David Gullion, Lucy Ann Geiselman, Chairs)

    Training of Society interviewers for "The Change Study"

    1984

  • 1985

    200 interviews for "The Change Study" conducted

    1985

  • 1987

    First issue of INTERCOM published in January (Harold Paul, Dene Murray, Editors)

    Joint AAMC/SMCDCME plenary highlights "The Change Study"

    1987

  • 1988

    RICME III, First Congress on CME

    First honorary member of the Society (Cyril Houle)

    Title change from Mobius to The Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions

    Development of first membership brochure

    1988

  • 1989

    Strategic Plan for the Society

    Membership in the Council of Academic Societies

    1989

  • 1990

    First meeting of the "Armadillo Society" (Past Presidents) convened in San Antonio

    1990

  • 1994

    Research Endowment Council established

    Task force white paper, "The connection between continuing medical education and health care reform" released

    1994

  • 1995

    Gloria Allington serves as first female president

    Request from AAMC for statement on CME

    Reorganization of AAMC's Group on Educational Affairs (GEA)

    Pew-Glaxo Working Group on the Future of Academic CME

    Report of Society working group on ACCME essentials and standards, "Future directions for medical college continuing medical education" released

    Request from ACCME for SACME accreditation surveyors

    1995

  • 1996

    Society invited to participate in task force on the restructuring of the ACCME

    1996

  • 1997

    SMCDCME listserv established (Bob Bollinger)

    1997

  • 1998

    July 20, SMCDCME re-named the Society for Academic Continuing Medical Education (SACME)

    1998

  • 1999

    SACME website created by Bob Bollinger

    1999

  • 2000

    Phil Manning Research Award in Continuing Professional Development established

    SACME "Report of the Task Force on Accreditation and Credit" released May 14

    2000

  • 2001

    Fox Award for Best Research Presentation established with Michael Allen as first recipient

    "Women's Health Project Report" released (Linda K. Gunzburger)

    2001

  • 2002

    Journal of Continining Education in the Health Professions indexed in Index Medicus for the first time

    2002

  • 2003

    SARS pandemic outbreak; Dave Davis and others enlisted to address urgent CME needs in Toronto

    2003

  • 2004

    5th World Congress on CME "Linking Information, Education, and Implementation: How CME Helps Translate Knowledge into Practice" (The CME Olympics) held at University of Toronto

    2004

  • 2005

    AAMC appointed Dave Davis its Petersdorf Scholar

    2005

  • 2007

    Society archives established at the McGovern Historical Center, Texas Medical Center Library at Baylor by Michael Fordis

    2007

  • 2008

    Sixth World Congress on CME “Advancing the Global CME/CPD Agenda: A Consortium Approach” held at University of British Columbia

    First AAMC Annual Integrating Quality and Education Conference, and Steering Committee Meeting held in Chicago, Illinois

    SACME aligned with Agency for Healthcare Research (AHRQ) to integrate quality initiatives with continuing medical education

    SACME, ACCME, and Mayo Clinic hosted the National Consensus Conference on CME

    2008

  • 2009

    SACME Sixth Summer Institute for CME Research held on June 14-17 at University of Toronto

    2009

  • 2010

    First SACME Summer Leadership Institute held on July 26 at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

    2010

  • 2011

    Pilot AAMC “Aligning Education for Quality (AE4Q)” initiative launched in Washington, DC (Dave Davis, Director of AAMC CME Section; Nancy Davis, Consultant)

    New SACME website launched

    2011

  • 2012

    Barbara Barnes, MD Keynote Address at SACME Annual Meeting established on March 31st

    2012

  • 2013

    SACME Professional Learning Community (PLC) established and launched with program “Using Social Media”

    Pfizer awarded $400,000 grant to support SACME Intervention Guideline Series (Terminology and Typology Project)

    2013

  • 2014

    SACME Virtual Journal Club (VJC) established

    2014

  • 2015

    SACME Fall Meeting was first to receive Accreditation and Credit Designation from Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through joint providership with USF Health

    2015

  • 2016

    SACME organizes 8th World Congress on CME "Advancing Learning and Care in the Health Professions"

    2016

  • 2017

    SACME Spring Meeting became the official Annual Meeting and SACME Fall Meeting discontinued

    SACME Academy of Fellows launched at 2017 Annual Meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona

    SACME book Continuing Professional Development in Medicine and Healthcare: Better Education, Better Patient Outcomes launched at signing at Annual Meeting

    SACME assumed responsibility for publication of CE News from the AAMC, originally started as a list of citations compiled by Carol Goddard; Robert D’Antuono appointed editor.

    2017

  • 2018

    Ad hoc Committee on New Technologies to Support Innovative CPD appointed

    SACME exhibited at the annual Association of Medical Educators of Europe (AMEE) Meeting held August 25-29 in Basel, Switzerland facilitating international awareness of SACME.

    2018

  • 2019

    AAMC shared initiatives with SACME including Quality Improvement and Patient Safety (QUIPS) Competencies Project

    2019

  • 2020

  • 2021

    Due to continuing COVID-19 pandemic, first virtual Annual Meeting “The Art and Science of CPD” held online

    Journal of Continuing Education in the Health Professions celebrates 40th Anniversary

    SACME selected by ACCME to develop CME Educator’s Toolkit

    2021

  • 2022

  • 2023

    SACME Annual Meeting “Inspiring and Igniting the CPD Imagination” held via hybrid format in Nashville, Tennessee

    2023

  • 2024

    Board approved new Executive Secretariat; transitioned in Fall from Bostrom Management Company in Chicago, Illinois to Custom Management Group in Charlottesville, Virginia.

    2024

  • 2025

  • 2026

    SACME celebrates 50 years, 1976 to 2026

    SACME Annual Meeting: 50th Anniversary Celebration to be held March 22-26 in Lexington, Kentucky

    2026

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