Joseph C Kolars MD, MACP

Joseph C. Kolars, MD, MACP serves as the Director of Strategic Development for Global Collaboration at the University of Michigan Medical School and Co-Director of Peking University U-M Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research. He has served as a collaborator and mentor for the Nursing School community and their partners. A practicing gastroenterologist, he is a Professor of Medicine and Learning Health Sciences, U-M Medical School, Professor of Health Management and Policy, U-M School of Public Health, and Adjunct Professor, U-M School of Nursing. His career as focused on medical education and capacity building in low-income countries. He was the founding director of the University of Michigan Center for Global Health Equity where he continues to serve as senior advisor. 

From 2009 - 2023 Dr. Kolars served as Senior Associate Dean for Education at the University of Michigan Medical School, overseeing medical student, graduate, resident/fellow, and post-doctoral education as well as continuing professional development/CME. He has served as Program Director of Internal Medicine Residency and fellowship programs at U-M and Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He has worked in global health and strengthening education systems in low-resource settings for over 40 years. 

From 1996-1999, he lived with his family in Shanghai to establish one of China’s first Western-based healthcare systems and in 2010 established U-M’s Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research with Peking University Health Science Center. He currently serves as a Trustee for the China Medical Board. From 2007-11 Dr. Kolars served as a consultant to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He has served on NIH’s Fogarty International Center Advisory Council and has been extensively involved with the NIH Medical Education Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and now the African Forum for Research and Education and Health (AFREhealth). In 2026, he was elected to the African Academy of Science as a Fellow. Dr. Kolars obtained his M.D. degree in 1982 from the University of Minnesota Medical School and completed his post-graduate training in gastroenterology in 1989 at the University of Michigan.