Matt Dane Baker, DHSc, PA-C, DFAAPA, was born in Philadelphia at Pennsylvania Hospital, the nation’s first hospital which was founded by Benjamin Franklin. He grew up and was educated in the Philadelphia area.
Baker began his collegiate education in 1975 at Temple University (TU) in Philadelphia. He transferred to Stockton University in Galloway, NJ in 1979, attaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice. He returned to TU to take graduate courses in counseling psychology, school psychology, group therapy, and marriage and family therapy. In September 1979, Baker worked as a psychiatric technician at the Northwest Institute of Psychiatry in Fort Washington, PA.
In 1981, Baker entered the physician assistant program at Hahnemann University (now Drexel University) in Philadelphia, graduating in 1983 with a bachelor of science in physician assistant studies. His first position as a PA was at the Philadelphia Geriatric Center, a long-term care hospital, clinic and research center. In 1985, he went to the Feasterville Family Health Center (now part of Jefferson-Abington Hospital) in Feasterville, PA, practicing family medicine until November 1987. To further his education, Baker made time to gain a master of science in gerontology from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia while maintaining a full-time clinical position.
In November 1987, Baker returned to Pennsylvania Hospital to work with Atkins, Keane, Rowe Otolaryngology Associates as a PA in otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery. Baker worked in a variety of other positions over the next 10 years, both clinical and administrative, mostly at the Philadelphia Geriatric Center as director of cardiac rehabilitation and administrator in the Department of Medicine.
In August 1994, Baker took on the task of founding director of the Philadelphia University Physician Assistant Program, a position he held for almost 10 years. In this position he was responsible for the development, implementation, and oversight of both the undergraduate and graduate physician assistant programs. During his last year as program director, Baker entered the doctor of health science program at Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, ultimately earning his doctorate degree in 2007.
Baker was named interim dean of the School of Science and Health in January 2004 and dean in 2005. In this position he had oversight of 40 full-time and 63 part-time/adjunct employees working in 14 majors in science, health, and psychology; and for the university science and mathematics general education curriculum.
Baker’s skills as an educator and administrator became increasingly apparent, and from July 2011 to May 2015 he served as the executive dean of the College of Science, Health and Liberal Arts. He then had responsibility for 245 employees working in 17 majors and 26 programs in science, health, psychology, social sciences, and the humanities; and for the university’s general education curriculum.
In June 2015, Baker was named provost, dean of faculty of Philadelphia University. He is possibly the first PA to become a provost in academia. His responsibilities in this new position included programs in architecture, engineering, business, design, science, health, psychology, social sciences, the humanities, and the general education curriculum. He was also responsible for 60 academic programs, from bachelor’s to doctorate levels, facilitating the Academic Affairs and Excellence Committee of the University Board of Trustees, and many other aspects of the University.
On July 1, 2017, Philadelphia University merged with Thomas Jefferson University. Baker was named senior vice provost for academic affairs. In this position he was the senior academic administrator, which focused on the professional education and research/discovery encompassing 10 colleges and 2 schools and approximately 200 academic programs in the fields of architecture, business, design, engineering, health, liberal arts, medicine, nursing, science, fashion, and textiles, just to name a few.
In July 2022, Baker became the interim provost and in August 2023, and permanent provost a year later of Thomas Jefferson University, a research university with approximately 8,500 students and post-doctoral fellows and 2,600 employees that are part of an enterprise that also includes a 32-hospital health system and a health insurance company.
Outside of his academic career, Matt Dane Baker served in the New Jersey (NJ) Army National Guard as a Chief Warrant Officer II from 1985 to 1989. In 1989, he transferred to the NJ Air National Guard serving as the Associate Chief of Medical Services. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2009 after 20 years of service.
Baker is the epitome of dedication to life-long education, a prolific writer and presenter and has received numerous military awards and academic and community honors. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Physician Associates, and Fellow of the Pennsylvania Society of Physician Assistants. He is a member of Pi Alpha (the National PA Honor Society), a past commissioner and on-site reviewer of the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA), an accreditation evaluation team member and site team chair with the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and serves on many other boards and committees.
Acknowledgments
This biography was written by Richard Vause with the assistance of Matt Dane Baker. It was submitted to the Society in March 2025. All photographs are courtesy of Dr. Baker.
When using information from this biography, please provide the proper citation as described within the PA History Society Terms of Use.
To request the use of the photographs that accompany this biography, please contact the PA History Society to request permission as some photographs might have restrictions on their use.
