Norm Taslitz Scholarship Fund

Help us endow the Norm Taslitz Scholarship Fund! 

Established in 2017 to honor beloved Physician Assistant faculty member, Norm Taslitz, once endowed this scholarship will support students in the program in perpetuity. 

The UNM PA Program is committed to training Physician Assistants to provide primary care for the underserved and rural populations of New Mexico. There is a tremendous need for additional providers in New Mexico, with language, cultural and access barriers that reflect the need for competent, equitable, accessible and evenly distributed health care in the state. The cost of a PA education can be a significant barrier for prospective PA students and endowing this scholarship will help deserving PA students finance their education so they can serve areas of great need upon completion of the program.

About Norm Taslitz

Dr. Taslitz retired from a very long and successful career in medical education. He received his B.S. in Education in 1951 from New York University, his Certificate in Physical Therapy from University of Pennsylvania in 1952, and went on to receive his Ph.D. in Anatomy from Stanford University in 1963. Dr. Taslitz, who many warmly known as “Norm”, has demonstrated his love and dedication toward medical education by working at several medical schools and humbly sharing his years of wisdom with novice learners. He first started as a Staff Physical Therapist in Wisconsin in the 1950s. After obtaining his Ph.D. from Stanford, he working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anatomy at Case Western Reserve and concurrently served as a visiting professor at Stanford University. He became the Department Chair of Anatomy and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs at the N.E. Ohio College. Before coming to New Mexico, he was the Associate Dean for Health Professions at Walsh University.

Norm was recruited to come to Albuquerque at the inception of the UNM Physician Assistant Program to serve an anatomy professor. He came with a wealth of skills and talents which spread beyond the program to the greater HSC community.  He promoted and facilitated international rotations for health sciences students, worked with the BA/MD program, had close ties to the OT/PT programs, and served as Ombudsman at one time. He sat on several leadership committees over his years here at UNM. 

Students and professors from the various chapters of Norm’s career continue to stay in touch with him well beyond their program completion. He served as an incredible and caring mentor to thousands of people. We thank him for his many years of enthusiastic and positive service to the UNM PA Program and to the HSC community.