Dr. John E. Olerud Endowed Professorship Elevated to Endowed Chair

The University of Washington Division of Dermatology is pleased to announce the John E. Olerud, M.D. Endowed Professorship in Dermatology Training has been officially elevated to the John E. Olerud, M.D. Endowed Chair in Dermatology Training. 

The newly-established endowed chair was achieved through the support of over 85 individual patrons, most notably Dr. Michael Piepkorn, Clinical Professor, whose generous gift helped elevate the professorship to an endowed chair.

We are thrilled to honor Dr. Olerud’s extraordinary legacy at UW Dermatology through the establishment of the endowed chair. Thank you to all those who have contributed to the success of this endowment over the years. Your support will continue to help grow our program and benefit dermatology educators and trainees for generations to come.

Named after Dr. John E. Olerud, professor emeritus and former Division Head, earnings from the Olerud endowment are used to support and enrich the educational mission of the UW Dermatology residency program, including the ability to recruit and retain distinguished faculty in dermatology and to strengthen dermatology training.

Cementing Dr. Olerud's Legacy

The Olerud endowment was first established in 2007 through a gift by John and Lynda Olerud. Over the past 15 years, numerous past trainees, staff and other individuals have also made significant contributions to the fund. The endowed professorship has provided a reliable stream of funding for the director of the UW Dermatology Residency Program. This allows the holder of the Olerud Professorship, who is currently Dr. Roy Colven, to have protected time to focus on the training of our residents. Dr. Colven has also used funds from the professorship to provide travel and a variety of training opportunities for residents.

Dr. John Olerud is noted for his extraordinary impact to our program and the field of dermatology. Under his leadership, UW Dermatology has become one of the nation’s leaders in training dermatologists. UW has one of the most competitive programs in the country, training about 11 residents who then go on to have successful academic and private practice careers. Dr. Olerud retired from clinical activity in 2020 after 50 years at the UW, and a 44-year career in the Division of Dermatology.