”Soon after I came to PCOM in 1989, I was asked to serve on a committee to revise
the faculty handbook and develop a tenure policy. Charlotte Greene was the chair of
the committee, which also included Michael Venditto, DO [now professor and chair,
Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine]. We had a big job to do. … Charlotte
was very knowledgeable about the multiple roles of faculty in an academic environment.
I enjoyed watching her pause for reflection, and if she didn’t have an immediate response,
she’d dig for information and come back to the table with advice for us. She worked
extremely hard in this task and in everything she did. … When Charlotte spoke, everybody
listened. She was never pedantic and always kept an open mind for the opinions of
others. … In her role as educator, Charlotte was responsible for teaching muscle physiology
to our Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine and Master's in Biomedical Sciences students. I went to her lectures because this was my area of research. Her goal was
to present this conceptually challenging material in a way that students would readily
understand and would help them appreciate the relevance to the principles and practice
of osteopathic medicine. She encouraged students to ask questions and made them feel that they had identified
gaps in our knowledge. … Where Charlotte really shined was in her research laboratory.
She was a terrific and imaginative scientist. Her favorite role was mentoring students
in the research process, and they flocked to her lab to be a part of her projects. … She was a pioneer in
research involving tissue regeneration. Charlotte’s work was recognized by a company
that contracted with her to test compounds for their effects on wound healing in a
model she developed. She also provided opportunities for surgeons to learn how to
perform laparoscopic cholecystectomy in the early days of minimally invasive procedures.
… Charlotte was always thoughtful and never boastful. Although she was passionate
about all things academic, she could see both sides of an issue. She loved PCOM and
stood behind the difficult decision to sell our hospital for the good of the College.
… I had so much respect for her as a colleague and an individual. I miss her a lot.
She touched the lives of many of our students.”
Digest, the magazine for alumni and friends of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, is published by the Office of Marketing and Communications. The magazine reports on osteopathic and other professional trends of interest to alumni of the College’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and graduate programs at PCOM, PCOM Georgia and PCOM South Georgia.
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