Meharry’s Dr. James Hildreth aims to use new research center to find effective  strategies for reaching out to african-americans at risk for hiv/aids

Dr. James E.K. Hildreth

Title: Director, Comprehensive Center for Health Disparities Research in HIV, Meharry Medical College

Education: Bachelor’s, Harvard University; Ph.D.,  University of Oxford, Oxford, England, M.D., Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Previous position: Professor of Pathology, Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences and Director, Monoclonal Antibody Core, Center for AIDS Research, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 2002-2005

NASHVILLE, Tenn.
Bright morning sun floods through the wall of windows in Dr. James E.K. Hildreth’s new fourth-floor office at Meharry Medical College. Light bathes his corner sitting area, washes over the framed photographs of family on his desk and spotlights the half-unpacked boxes scattered along one wall, hinting at his cherished collection of African art and books.

Hildreth, a prominent HIV/AIDS researcher, and director of Meharry’s new Comprehensive Center for Health Disparities Research in HIV, has just been on the job since July, and he is already feeling a sense of accomplishment. He’s getting windows in his laboratory and the painted “accent walls” that he went to battle for. For Hildreth, it’s not just about aesthetics. It’s about productivity and function.

When you are on the brink of a breakthrough, poised to usher in the fruits of years of biomedical research that could stop the spread of the deadly virus that causes AIDS, lights, windows and a bit of color aren’t a lot to ask for.

“Clearly, infrastructure at Meharry isn’t what it is at Hopkins,” admits Hildreth. When he came to the college, he found “walls painted battleship gray, and every other light bulb missing.” Changing that atmosphere was near the top of Hildreth’s list.