Rowan School of Osteopathic Medicine Dean Thomas Cavalieri, DO, honored with NBOME Santucci Award

The National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME), an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides testing for osteopathic medical licensure, announced Thomas A. Cavalieri, DO, as the recipient of their 2019 Santucci Award. The award recognizes sustained outstanding contributions to the NBOME’s mission of protecting the public by providing the means to assess competencies for osteopathic medicine and related health care professions. 

Dr. Cavalieri is the Dean of Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine and the NBOME's past-chair and longtime National Faculty leader. He received the award at the NBOME midyear Board of Directors meeting, which also celebrated the 85th anniversary of the organization.

“It is an honor and a privilege to celebrate the life and work of a man who has had such an impact on our mission and our profession,” said current NBOME Board Chair, Dana Shaffer, DO. “His work and dedication have gone a long way toward producing superior doctors and outcomes for patients across the U.S.”

Dr. Cavalieri was first recruited in the late 1980s as an exam item writer by fellow NBOME past-chairs, Frederick G. Meoli, DO, and Thomas Santucci, DO. He became Board President in 2001, and Board Chair in 2002 when the NBOME first hired a full-time physician President and CEO. During this time, he oversaw the launch of the COMLEX-USA Level 2-Performance Evaluation.

Dr. Cavalieri has led various NBOME committees, chairing the COMLEX-USA Level 3 examination committee as well as the Standards and Assurances committee. Additionally, he was a principle author of the published manuscript, “The Predictive Validity of Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examinations for Osteopathic Medical Knowledge Measured by Graduate Written Examinations.”

“Dr. Cavalieri led the NBOME at a pivotal time in our history,” said NBOME President and CEO, John R. Gimpel, DO, MEd. “His leadership has set an example of steadfast commitment to excellence and osteopathic distinctiveness that he has continued long past his tenure at our organization.”

About the NBOME
NBOME is an independent, non-governmental, non-profit assessment organization committed to protecting the public by providing the means to assess competencies for osteopathic medicine and related health care professions. NBOME’s COMLEX-USA examination series is a requirement for graduation from colleges of osteopathic medicine and provides the pathway to licensure for osteopathic physicians in the United States and numerous international jurisdictions.