| Barbara Ross-Lee | |
| Honorific Suffix: | DO |
| Birth Date: | 1 June 1942 |
| Birth Place: | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Wayne State University Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine |
| Employer: | New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine Minnesota College of Osteopathic Medicine |
| Occupation: | Physician, Academic |
| Known For: | First female dean of a US medical school |
| Spouse: | |
| Children: | 5 |
| Family: | Diana Ross (sister) Rhonda Ross Kendrick (niece) Tracee Ellis Ross (niece) Evan Ross (nephew) |
Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O. (born June 1, 1942) is an American physician, academic, and the first African-American woman to serve as dean of a U.S. medical school; she is also known as the sister of Diana Ross along with being the aunt of actress Tracee Ellis Ross, and singer-songwriters Rhonda Ross Kendrick and Evan Ross.[1] [2] She majored in biology and chemistry at Wayne State University, graduating in 1965.[3] Then, in 1969, she entered Michigan State University's College of Osteopathic Medicine. Ross-Lee then went on to open her own private family practice, teach as a professor, and hold other positions within the medical community. In 1993, she was elected as the first woman dean of a medical school, at Ohio University's Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. She has earned several awards and honors for her work and accomplishments.[4]
Ross-Lee was born to Ernestine (née Moten; January 27, 1916 – October 9, 1984) and Fred Ross, Sr. (July 4, 1920 – November 21, 2007) and raised in the housing projects of Detroit. She is the eldest of six children, including sister Diana Ross. Ross-Lee attended Wayne State University for her undergraduate education. She was married during her junior year, which prolonged graduation by a year.[5] Barbara Ross had begun her pre-medical studies at Wayne State University in 1960, during the growth of the civil rights movement. At that time, few medical schools offered admission to minority students and neither federal nor private funding was available to help support students from low-income families. At Wayne State, her pre-medical advisor did not believe women should be physicians, and so she declined to authorize Ross's request to study human anatomy as her major.[4] Ross instead graduated with a bachelor of science degree in biology and chemistry in 1965 and joined the National Teacher Corps, a federal program, in which she could earn a degree while teaching simultaneously in the Detroit public school system.[6] After completing the program in 1969, a new educational opportunity arose when Michigan State University opened a school of osteopathic medicine in Pontiac, a Detroit suburb, to which Ross-Lee applied and was accepted.[7] [8]