Lester R. Bryant, MD, was an accomplished cardiothoracic surgeon and researcher when he was named dean of the Marshall University School of Medicine in 1985, following Dr. Robert Coon. 

Dr. Bryant left Marshall in 1989 for the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he initiated an era of growth focused on rural medicine and telehealth until his retirement in 2000.

He passed away May 2, 2018, at the age of 87.