John P. Howe, III, MD
President and Chief Executive Officer
Project HOPE
Dr. John P. Howe, III, Distinguished Chair in Health Policy at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, became President & CEO of Project HOPE on May 1, 2001. Project HOPE is an international health foundation, with offices and programs in 35 countries on 5 continents. He is board certified in both internal medicine and cardiovascular disease and a tenured professor in the University’s Department of Medicine.
Dr. Howe had been the Health Science Center’s chief executive for fifteen years. He provided leadership to the University's Medical School, Dental School, Nursing School, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, School of Allied Health Sciences and Doctor of Pharmacy program.
Dr. Howe earned a bachelor’s degree at Amherst College and his medical degree at Boston University School of Medicine. He served two years in the Army Medical Corps and later completed the Health Systems Management Program at Harvard Business School.
He has served recent terms as president of both the Texas Medical Association and the Bexar County Medical Society. He is a board member of the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research, and the Southwest Research Institute, Mercy Health Systems of Texas, and the San Antonio Medical Foundation, which develops the South Texas Medical Center.
Dr. Howe is Chair of the Harvard College Board of Overseers Committee to Visit the Medical School and School of Dental Medicine and a member of the Board of Visitors of the Boston University School of Public Health. He is also the founding President of the Texas Society for Biomedical Research, a member and past Chair of the American Medical Association’s Council on Scientific Affairs, and a past member of the United States Air Force Scientific Advisory Board.
Dr. Howe was appointed by the Governor to serve as Chairman of the Texas Statewide Health Coordinating Council, a group chartered by the state legislature to develop a health plan for the State of Texas.
Among his numerous honors and awards are the U.S. Army’s Commander’s Award for Public Service, the People of Vision Award from the Texas Society to Prevent Blindness, the Award of Excellence from the International Association of Business Communicators, the National Humanitarian Award from the National Jewish Center for Immunology and Respiratory Medicine, and the Surgeon General’s Exemplary Service Award.
In 1994, Dr. Howe received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Boston University School of Medicine. In 1998, Dr. Howe was the recipient of the “Mr. South Texas” award, an honor given by South Texans to leaders who have made significant contributions to this rapidly expanding region.
He has been featured on national television and in national journals as a leader in the biosciences. He represented the United States at a Tri-National Conference on Health in Mexico City, a forum designed to develop solutions to multi-national health concerns following the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. Dr. Howe has spoken in more than 30 states, has presented testimony to the U.S. Congress and has been a national advocate for the importance of continued medical research.