Interim Chair
Assistant Professor & Clerkship Director, Pediatrics
Email: valerie.smith@uttyler.edu
Department: Pediatrics
Valerie Smith, MD, MPH, FAAP
Degrees
- MPH, University of Texas at Tyler, 2020
- MD - University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, 2021
- BA - Baylor University, Sociology, 1997
Biography
Dr. Smith is the Interim Department Chair of Pediatrics at the University of Texas
at Tyler School of Medicine and also serves as the Pediatric Clerkship Director and
Assistant Professor. Previously, Dr. Smith served as the Chief Programs and Quality
Officer at St. Paul Children鈥檚 Services in Tyler, Texas for over 16 years where she
led their Community-Centered Health Home Initiative and Integrated Behavioral Health
programs. She is a graduate of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School,
completed her residency at Arkansas Children鈥檚 Hospital, and received her MPH from
the University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler.
Dr. Smith is passionate about providing high quality care for children in foster care
and reforming the foster system to better serve children and families. Those efforts
include previously co-chairing the Texas Pediatric Society鈥檚 Foster Care Committee,
serving as the inaugural American Academy of Pediatrics Child Welfare and Health Policy
Fellow, and consulting for Superior HealthPlan鈥檚 Foster Care Centers of Excellence
Program.
She has multiple leadership roles with the Texas Pediatric Society, Texas Medical
Association, and American Academy of Pediatrics. She currently serves as chair of
TMA鈥檚 Council of Science and Public Health. She also served on its COVID-19 taskforce
and chaired the school reopening workgroup. In addition to serving as TPS鈥檚 secretary/treasurer,
she co-chairs its Executive Legislative Committee and is the AAP鈥檚 District VII Facilitator
for the Community Access To Child Health Program and serves on the AAP鈥檚 Committee
on Federal Government Affairs. She also serves on the board of the East Texas Food
Bank, Northeast Texas Public Health District, and Texans Care for Children
Presentations and Panels
- American Academy of Pediatrics Advocacy Conference, Making Advocacy Work, April 2023
- American Academy of Pediatrics Advocacy Conference, Fostering Justice: Pediatrician Advocacy in Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Reform, April 2024
- National Anti-Hunger Policy Conference, The Doctor is in: Addressing Food Insecurity in Clinical Settings, March 2020
- Texas Pediatric Society Annual Meeting, What鈥檚 for Dinner? The Pediatrician鈥檚 Role in Addressing Food Insecurity, October 2017
- Texas Pediatric Society Annual Meeting, Public Health Applications in Child Welfare, October 2020
Awards
- Innovation in Teaching Excellence Award, University of Texas at Tyler, 2024
- Outstanding Alumni, 黑料专区 Tyler School of Health Professions, 2024
- Excellence in Community Engagement, 黑料专区 Tyler School of Medicine, 2024
- Outstanding Student Research Project, 黑料专区 Tyler Health Science School of Community and Rural Health, 2020
- W. T. 鈥淒oc鈥� Ballard Award for Excellence in Public Health, Northeast Texas Public Health District, 2019
- Mary Green Noble Special Achievement Award, Texas Pediatric Society, 2019
- Chapter Achievement Award, American Academy of Pediatrics, 2013 & 2017
- Executive Board Award, Texas Pediatric Society, 2012
- Jocelyn Elders Award for Excellence in Community Pediatrics, Arkansas Children鈥檚 Hospital, 2004