(gentle music) - Platform party, please be seated.

Good afternoon.

I am Dr. Joyce Dejong Dean of the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

It is my distinct pleasure to serve as the dean and we welcome all of you to the Hooding and Commencement Ceremony at the MSU Breslin Student Event Center.

We celebrate nearly 300 of our students graduating this evening as doctors of osteopathic medicine.

(audience applauding) Today we celebrate the academic accomplishments of our Spartan graduates.

We ask that all in attendance are respectful of today's ceremony and adhere to university ordinances and expectations.

To best honor our graduates, please take a moment to turn off your cell phones and all other electronic devices or at least silence them.

At this time and prior to our national anthem, I ask that our active military, active military graduates and veterans both in the class and in the audience, please rise so we can acknowledge your dedication and service to our country.

(audience applauding) Well, everyone please rise and join me in the singing of the United States National Anthem performed by the Lansing Concert Band.

(playful music) (playful continues) (audience applauding) Please be seated.

We would like to thank the Lansing Concert Band for today's performance conducted by John Endahl.

(audience applauding) At this time, I am the 6th dean of the college, but it is my pleasure to invite the 5th dean, the former Dean, Dr. Andrea Amalfitano to give his remarks.

Dr. Amalfitano.

(audience applauding) - Hello everybody, remember me?

First, I'd like to thank the faculty and staff of MSU College of Osteopathic Medicine, in particular Dean Dejong for allowing me the privilege and honor to address the class of 2024 here today.

As I was proud to be your dean and I was dean during most of your education here at COM.

I went back and looked at some of the comments I made to you through the years including our version of a white coat ceremony we did way back when.

As you clearly recall, we were in the midst of a pandemic when you entered our college and because of the policies in place at that time we had to very much change the educational experiences you needed to not only comply and cope with the risks of COVID-19, but also for you to become that great doctor you have always desired to be.

How did we meet that goal?

Well, we certainly adapted our curriculum and your education dramatically, but all the while we also remain committed to helping you understand that medicine is more than just a science, it is still a medical art.

As osteopathic physicians, we do not reduce patients down to a single symptom radiographic finding or nucleotide, but we always approach our patients in a holistic manner, looking at the greater good, greater picture, including our patients families and greater society in every medical and research decision we make.

As a result, you'll now always bring a unique and progressive skillset to the patients you will now guide in health at each and every encounter, holistically preserving health and when necessary treating disease.

Please do not forget how unique you and your osteopathic education are in the current world of healthcare because quite frankly the house of medicine needs your perspective and expertise now more than ever.

Finally, I wanna let every one of you know how proud I was of you during those early years of your medical education as you endured much change as a result of the pandemic and the restraints it imposed on us as a medical school.

I was so happy that you not only endured these radical and last minute changes and adapt adaptations that we had to do, but you always did this with grace and maturity and professionalism and as colleagues, we together sort of navigated grounds no one had ever navigated before, certainly as a med school, and that wasn't always the case in some of the other colleges at MSU or even nationally.

So I was very privileged to have the honor to be dean during that time with you.

I'll be forever impressed by the class of 2024 and with that, I sincerely wish you good luck and go green.

(audience applauding) - Thank you, Dr. Amalfitano.

Thank you for your service to the college.

The Michigan Osteopathic Association represents all DOS in Michigan.

This association was instrumental in creating the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Michigan State University in 1969.

Please join me in welcoming Michigan Osteopathic Association President, Dr. Andrew Adair.

(audience applauding) - Thank you guys.

Thank you for having me today.

I'm here addressing you as the president.

I would like to thank Dean Dejong for inviting me to speak on this occasion.

The history of MSU Com and the MOA goes way back to the inception of the first osteopathic college.

It was in 1959 that the MOA President announced his intentions of making the creation of a college of osteopathic medicine the top priority for the MOA.

Through the 60s, the MOA made the lobbying for an osteopathic school in the number one priority.

The association assessed each member $800 annually to raise money for the school that became the foundation of what your class is today.

Now for the latest chapter, I am truly honored to congratulate all of you from Michigan State College of Osteopathic Medicine.

As you start your residencies and begin the next stage of your career.

Remember, you're taking a piece of M-S-U-Q-M and your trainers with you.

I highly encourage each of you to stay active within your profession.

If history is any indication, a large majority of you will remain in Michigan for your residency training.

It is my sincere hope that you will stay in Michigan to practice and hopefully to become a member of the MOA as a residents free and become an active participant.

Be part of what will shape the future of the profession.

As each of you enter the next chapter of your career, I offer this small piece of advice.

Please take time to value the connections you make at every step.

Look around, the friendships you have at this stage will follow you throughout life when you get to the stage I am in as an osteopathic physician older.

I think you will realize your colleagues will be a huge part of your career and your life.

Thank you again for having me and congratulations.

(audience applauding) - It is my honor at this time to introduce our commencement speaker Patricia M. Lorusso, DO.

As an alumna of the college, Dr. Lorusso is an academic medical oncologist and researcher.

For 30 years, she has focused on early phase clinical trials.

First at Wayne State University's Karmanos Cancer Institute and for the last 10 years at Yale University's Yale Cancer Center.

She's received funding from The National Institute of Health, National Cancer Institute for 28 years and has played significant roles in organizations like the American Association for Cancer Research where she currently serves as president, the first DO president and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Dr. Lorusso is passionate about training the next generation of physicians and researchers.

She chairs the New Agents Committee for Cancer Research United Kingdom and has a deep understanding of the patient's perspective having lost her parents to cancer at a young age.

In short, she has been and continues to be transformational in advancing cancer research to improve both longevity and quality of life.

Please join me in warmly welcoming Dr. Lorusso (audience applauding) - Dean Dejong, family, guests, class of 2024.

I am honored to be amongst you today sending you off now as graduates as newly minted osteopathic physicians on the next phase of your life's journey.

Since receiving the invitation to give this convocation address, I have repeatedly asked myself, how does one instill motivation in others in less than 15 minutes?

But as I look out at you today, I realize that what sits before me is amazing talent with such potential to go out and change the world, to impact others and to change lives.

Just by being a member of this graduating class today, I know that the motivation exists in each and every one of you spearheaded by many life experiences, excited to embark on a mission to save lives.

38 years ago in 1981, I was sitting in that same seat that you are in today.

Michigan State University took a chance on me after graduating from a liberal arts college whose total undergraduate admissions and enrollment was smaller than my high school graduating class.

In fact, that College Marygrove in the inner city of Detroit closed its doors in 2019.

Although a biology major, my additional and most revered major was religious studies, not one that can easily get you through a medical school admission store, and being a woman before gender quotas were even a concept.

I was afforded the opportunity to fulfill my life dream.

I was accepted.

(audience applauding) Thank you.

I was accepted to Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

34 years ago when I graduated, my dream was stronger than ever much like many of you sitting here before me today.

What I wanted was to make a difference.

I wanted to be a medical oncologist to work on developing new cancer treatments.

I wanted to cure cancer.

At least two dozen cancer drugs later, drugs for which I helped develop and shepherd through the FDA approval process, I believe my passion now is stronger than ever.

I have come to realize through the many advancements and discoveries in my field that it isn't one disease, but rather a multiple of multitude of diseases that are collectively under the one word umbrella, cancer.

This realization has unfolded through work and perseverance of scientists and clinicians much like many of you will become and realized by amazing men and women many today that I can say with both honor and privilege I call my colleagues and friends.

However, the very thing that continues to fuel my dream and passion, my daily life experiences and watching people with cancer suffer and knowing that if I can even make a small impact, perhaps their lives in the lives of their loved ones will be better.

No matter how small, I have the ability to make a difference.

The cumulative results of all those small differences improved outcomes for patients with such a devastating disease.

On Monday, April 8th, 2024, I became the president of the American Association for Cancer Research, a research organization with 58,000 members spanning 140 countries and territories founded 117 years ago, it is an organization whose original members were mainly basic scientists.

I am not only the first clinician scientists.

but more so and even more honorable for me, the first osteopathic clinician scientist to ever take that helm.

(audience applauding) Keep in mind that although I was honored, it was because many people assisted me on my journey.

Although I consider it one of the greatest honors of my academic career, I also realized that cancer research is no longer only about basic science.

We have cured millions and millions of mice in our lifetime, but the ultimate goal curing patients, I am leaning on you as the next generation of clinicians, physician scientists and clinician scientists to advance us closer to the cure, be it in the discipline of oncology, infectious disease, cardiology, or whatever specialty you choose.

You, our next generation have been afforded many more tools than I my generation had at this point in our career, but with those tools and resources come responsibility.

I know that I am looking out at a group of motivated individuals who both dream and are committed to improving the world, to finding cures and will make these changes will improve the world through your passion and perseverance.

Just a few years ago there were people at Michigan State University who believed in you and took a chance with you so that as former students and now graduates of this osteopathic medical school, you have been given the necessary tools that will afford you to go forward and enable the lives of others as well as yourselves.

This institution, your mentors, they all took a chance on you and haven't part portrayed you to fulfill your dreams, but making your dreams a reality is now yours to accomplish.

You must now define your dreams more than ever before believe in them and go forth and make those dreams come true.

Go out and make it happen.

Your future will be filled with lessons learned from real life scenarios, rejections of grant submissions, resubmission requests of manuscripts you have written and rewritten, rejection from jobs applied for, a patient's treatment strategy gone awry and occasional opportunities.

It is in those opportunities that seeds will be planted, that you will grow from and become successful and that will make your personal life and your career dreams come true.

There are however many lessons about life that I have learned along the way, so as I thought about what I could possibly say to you today, my thoughts repetitively circled back to discreet lessons that I have learned that have made me who I am and have accounted for my successes.

I would like to share a few of those life lessons with you.

First and foremost, your life is a gift.

Regardless of who or where you think your life came from, treasure it because as you grow older, you will realize that it doesn't last forever.

Make sure you make the most out of each and every day because as you grow older you will realize that not everyone will be blessed with a tomorrow.

I was given a stimulus for my dream.

I lost loved ones including my parents early in life from this enemy that I called cancer.

Part of my life, yes, was defeated early, but I have used those lessons to enhance my passion.

When things were not going well career wise, I have reflected on those personal losses and other losses that I see and those losses gave me strength to rewrite my path.

Find that stimulus in your life, in developing your career that can help drive the passion and help you to persevere when times get tough.

You will be faced along the way with many challenges, both personal and professional.

Although you may not recognize it at the time, the challenges that you will be faced with can be a stimulus for making you stronger, for giving you a greater drive.

People will try to dissuade you from your dreams.

People will be jealous of you, but you must be comfortable and believe in yourself.

You must stay focused on what your ultimate goal is.

You must persevere.

You will make mistakes along the way, everybody does.

To say that you have lived life without making mistakes is probably saying that you have not lived life to the fullest.

I have come to realize that an event is only a mistake if you have not personally grown as a result of it.

I have transformed the word mistake into the concept of a life learning event.

Learning from these events, I have grown as an individual.

I believe it is important to not waste inherent talents.

It is important to make a difference.

However, what does making a difference mean?

This must be defined within you as an individual.

Raising children who become excellent citizens is making a difference.

Helping others is making a difference.

Even adopting a pet is making a difference.

There are many things in life, both big and small that can easily be viewed and defined as making a difference.

Find out what making a difference means to you and for you and go out and make that difference.

Don't expect success overnight.

Very few people achieve it that way.

Success also means different things to different people, but the ultimate success, I believe it is a job well done with honesty and integrity and compassion.

Mentorship is important not only to do, but also to have.

It has been my mentors who have helped transform my career into what it is today.

No one is ever too old or too smart to have mentorship.

At my age and my career stage, I still rely on mentorship for advice.

However, you must choose your mentors wisely.

It doesn't have to be the most renowned clinician or scientist rather, it has to be someone you can trust, you can believe in and has time for you, someone who wants you to grow into someone better than they are, to be proud of you as your career advances.

It is very difficult to succeed without a team.

So surround yourself with people that share a similar passion, that believe in team growth and that are at least as smart and gifted if not more so than you are.

If you are a successful leader, you will be akin to the conductor of an orchestra.

Your team members, they will be your instrumentalists.

Each can make amazing music but without harmony, make noise.

Your job as the team leader, as the orchestra conductor is to make that noise harmonize to make beautiful music.

It is also important to remember that as their leader, you are just their conductor, a necessary component of the whole.

You are no more important than each of your instrumentalists.

You all just have different roles.

You need to find your orchestra, your team members, and together you need to do great things.

In oncology, the area of medicine that I practice, the NF1 concept has become important.

It is a concept that we can no longer generically treat cancer that each individual person and person's tumor is unique and has a different molecular signature for which the cancer therapy we give needs to be tailored.

The scientific concept is long... Has been long overdue and has only unfolded as the result of modern scientific tools, but has transformed what we know and how we think of cancer.

If we take this concept and apply it to each of us, we are all NF1s.

Each of us is unique and has great potential.

The majority of our great leaders have been NF1s.

Andrew T still and NF1 created the medicine of osteopathy.

My mentors, Dr. Richard Pester established the Oncology Center of Excellence at the FDA that has transformed how we approve cancer therapeutics.

My mentor, Dr. Thomas Corbett developed syngeneic models that are still used today that have helped us discover new cancer therapies, and your mentor as an example, Dr. Terry Taylor has taken chances and risks to transform the lives of the Malawi population to better understand and treat malaria so as to save lives.

Finally, take a moment to look around you.

There will be those amongst you who will find cures for diseases and help understand the mysteries of life and death.

There will be those amongst you that have secured residencies now and in the future subsequent fellowships and will make significant contributions in their respective fields and hopefully there will be ones amongst you who dream of helping to find a cure for cancer as I did many years ago when I sat in that very seat that you are sitting in today and perhaps one of you will help find a cure for another disease, help develop amazing disease prevention strategies and help unfold maybe an amazing discovery that may afford you a Nobel Prize.

I'm deliberate however, in saying help discover because even though your name will be on that Nobel Prize and the writeup in the history books will name you, I can guarantee you won't make those discoveries, win those awards without a lot of help and support from a lot of unnamed people.

So this is what I ask of you.

Seek out that support, accept it, and then when it's your chance, pay it forward and give credit where credit is due.

In closing, today is the beginning of making your dreams come true, but whatever results in the education that you just completed individually, collectively, the potential in this room is enormous.

I believe the potential from this graduating class of 2024 can be transformative, and so I leave you with a final request and perhaps a challenge.

Follow your dreams.

Focus on making that difference.

Use those gifts so graciously given to you and begin this journey today with a dream, your dream and always have faith that your dream can and will come true.

Thank you.

(audience applauding) - Before you run away, Dr. Larusso.

You weren't running away.

I'd like to present you with this gift.

- Thank you.

- Thanking you for being our keynote speaker.

- Thank you.

- Thank you so much.

(audience applauding) - We will now hear remarks from your class president soon to be Dr. Maria Miglio.

(audience applauding) - Thank you for the introduction, Dean Dejong.

Hello everyone.

Today is a special day for all of the graduates in the class of 2024.

There are so many people here who helped make this day possible.

I'd first like to welcome our families, friends, MSU Board of Trustees, Dean Dejong, Dr. Amalfitano, distinguished members of the platform party, faculty, staff, veterans, and active service members.

Lastly, but most certainly not least, I must welcome the MSU Comm class of 2024.

(audience applauding) For those whom I have not had the opportunity to meet.

My name is Maria Miglio.

I've had the remarkable opportunity to serve as the president for the class of 2024 over the last four years.

It is an honor to stand here today with my classmates to celebrate our accomplishments together.

I had like to begin by recognizing the family, friends, and support systems that are here with us today.

Thank you for taking the time to celebrate with our class.

I would also like to recognize those loved ones who could not be here with us today, but help to build the physicians you see here.

No matter where they are just know that they're so extremely proud of you.

Without these support systems, there is no way we could have gotten through medical school and everything else that led us up to this point.

Classmates, please stand and give a huge round of applause to our biggest supporters.

(audience applauding) Thank you.

I would also like to take a moment to thank the MSU Comm administration, faculty and staff.

Our medical school journey was certainly atypical and did not start out as anyone expected, but with your leadership diligence and support, you helped turn a group of students into doctors.

We admire your unrelenting commitment to the betterment of your work and program.

We thank you for all that you have done.

I would lastly like to thank the class government executive board members who sit behind me and have helped make our medical school experience so successful.

This group of students has dedicated hours upon hours advocating for students, planning events, attending meetings, and everything in between.

The class of 2024 and myself especially could not have done this without you all.

Students, can we please give another round of applause for our amazing classmates?

(audience applauding) Our first year of medical school was nothing like we could have predicted.

I had done the research, I'd spoken to upperclassmen, read books by doctors recounting their medical school experience and watched all the medical student vloggers on YouTube.

I was looking forward to spending countless hours in the anatomy lab forming study groups with my classmates and all but moving onto my campus.

I could have never predicted that we would start medical school at the beginning of a global pandemic and all that came with it.

We truly were the Covid class.

We were forced to adapt, live in unprecedented times, navigate a pandemic and care for ourselves and our families, all while learning how the body flows, how the body fights a virus, and everything in between.

The pandemic made us flexible, creative, strong, resilient, and more human.

It was weeks before our orientation when classrooms were replaced with Zoom rooms.

We traded spending hours in the anatomy lab wearing those smelly baggy scrubs that fit no one for learning through our screens and sweatpants and slippers.

We got to know our classmates through computers, face masks, group chats, and shared quizlets.

Despite the differences from what we expected, we made it our own.

We crammed for exams over Zoom silent studies, took lots of outdoor walks, met everyone's pets over video chat and had socially distanced dinners with our new classmates.

We were flexible in learning and finding new ways to connect.

As we entered our second year of medical school, restrictions were lifted and masks were lowered.

We emerged from the comfort of our homes where we spent our first year of medical school studying, growing and starting to become doctors.

We stepped onto campus and our barely worn scrubs and with a new energy, we soaked up all the medical school experiences that we could.

We made lasting friendships with our pod mates, listened to Dr. DeCarlo lecture with enthusiasm, dressed up and partied for fifollies and did so many EKGs with DJS, blew up the group chat with memes after every exam and finally had our white coat ceremony.

We felt like the doctors we were becoming and by the end of the year we were ready to step into the hospital.

With boards and pre clerkship behind us coming in after a month of summer fun, we were ready to take on patients as third years.

I still remember sitting in the empty parking lot of my first rotation.

It was a warm...

It was a warm August morning and I was starting family medicine.

With all my nervousness I was over 30 minutes early.

My crisp white coat was sitting next to me as I anxiously waited for the doors to be unlocked.

This was our chance to finally see what it felt like to be a doctor.

However, this fresh feeling was swiftly taken away.

I was in the same parking lot when I received the call.

Our dear classmate, Henry Alakai had passed away.

I had only met Henry briefly before this, but the impact he made on our class was obvious and spoke volumes.

There was a silence, a stillness, and a sadness that overcame everyone at MCU Comm.

Henry wanted to be a pediatrician and he would've been exceptional.

He was caring, kind, thoughtful, and full of joy.

While he isn't physically here with us today, I know he's here celebrating with his friends and classmates.

Can we please take a moment of silence for our friend Henry?

Thank you.

The loss of Henry showed us the importance of community and our support systems.

With the help of each other, we grew, we loved and we healed.

We now have a better understanding of loss and through this we can better care for our patients and be more compassionate humans and doctors.

To honor Henry the Alikai family has started a scholarship in his name that will be given to MSU Comm student each year who is interested in pediatrics.

I'm excited to say that fundraising is almost at its goal.

If you're interested in donating, please look for the QR code in your graduation booklet to get involved.

While we experienced absolute heartbreak within the first month of our third year, there was still work to be done.

We showed resilience and continued rotations through new specialties every month.

It was our time to figure out if we liked being in clinic, delivering babies, rounding for hours on internal medicine.

It was a place to learn about DKA protocols or war etiquette and amoxicillin dosing.

We met more of our classmates from different campuses and built bonds that will never be broken.

It was a time to use our newfound creativity and strength to learn about medicine and even more about ourselves.

We all came out on the other side knowing what we wanted to do for the rest of our lives.

Time kept moving and before we knew it, we were fourth years facing our final year of medical school.

We started audition rotations where we put in our best performance every day for months on end, we worked on our residency applications, debated if we actually wanted to practice in rural Ohio and then waited anxiously for the interview invites to roll in.

I know the day that we saw the first interview invite pop up in our email inbox.

We all let out a huge sigh of relief.

And now most of us did these interviews from the comfort of our home with blazers on top and sweatpants on bottom.

Logging into Zoom once again, our experience came full circle.

What was such a key component of our beginning became part of our ending.

However, it wasn't our full ending.

In contrast to how we started, we got to celebrate key moments together and in-person.

Most recently, we gathered with our friends and family in Novi and all around the world to open up our match day envelopes and emails to see where we'd be training for the next few years.

After we came together to celebrate all of our hard work with our classmates at a post match day party, and here we are once again together celebrating our biggest accomplishment.

We made it.

We made it through the pandemic, countless hours of studying, eternal rounding, never ending surgeries and loss.

We have been shaped and molded by these experiences should transform us into who we are now.

We are flexible, creative, strong, resilient, and more human.

But most importantly, we're doctors.

So congratulations to the doctors in the class of 2024.

Thank you.

(audience applauding) - Thank you, President Miglio.

COM staff will now prepare the graduates to line up for hooding and diplomas.

Mr. Jody Knol and Dr. Linda Kernohan from MSU WKAR Radio are presenting the graduates and their family, mentor or faculty hooders this evening.

We will now recognize our three graduates serving in Malawi who will be hooded by Dr. Terry Taylor, Jesse Lang Meyer, Madison Patras, and Rachel Suzanne Song.

(audience applauding) I believe I'm waiting for Jody Knol.

- Anthony Nathere Cholak is being hooded by Dr. Joyce DeJong, DO.

Go ahead.

(audience applauding) Maria C. Miglio, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Jefrey Fishman.

(audience applauding) Christine N. Buchanan, MS, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Gerald Buchanan, and her mother, Dr. Michelle Buchanan.

(audience applauding) Maria Ashley Green, DO will be hooded by her mentor Dr. Gerald Buchanan.

(audience applauding) Sydney A. Hanson, DO will be hooded by her mentor Dr. Gerald Buchanan.

(audience applauding) Hailey M. Katulski, DO is being hooded by Dr. Andrew Adair, DO.

(audience applauding) Matthew R. Ammerman, DO is being hooded by Dr. Susan Enright, DO.

(audience applauding) Falguni S. Calcuni, DO is being hooded by Dr. Marita Gilbert, DO.

(audience applauding) Organa Kevin Obena, DO is being hooded by Dr. Andrea Amalfitano, DO.

(audience applauding) Divya Vipul Patel, DO is being hooded by Dr. John Goodrow, DO.

(audience applauding) Paola Kamga, DO is being hooded by Dr. Anissa Mattison, DO.

(audience cheering) Caolan J. Keenan, DO is being hooded by Dr. Patricia Obando, DO.

(audience applauding) Brendan P. Keelan, DO is being hooded by Dr. Bruce Wolf, DO.

(audience applauding) Reena Mathew DO, is being hooded by Dr. Bruce Wolf, DO.

(audience applauding) (audience applauding) Kyle Robert Huber DO is being hooded by Dr. Kirsten Wara, DO.

(audience applauding) Vianca Cristina Bedoya, DO is being hooded by Dr. KCatherine Ruger, HD.

(audience applauding) Umar Akel, DO.

(audience applauding) Tess M. Bradley, DO is being hooded by Dr. Marjan Moghaddam, DO.

(audience applauding) Ines Eugenio Fernandez, DO is being hooded by Dr. Marjan Moghaddam, DO.

(audience applauding) Zain Sheik, DO is being hooded by Dr. Teri Hammer, DO.

(audience applauding) Nicholas Drew Sandercott, DO also being hooded by Dr. Teri Hammer.

(audience applauding) Eugene Lucci, DO is being hooded by Dr. Mary Jordan, DO.

(audience applauding) Jefrey P. Clemence Jr. DO is being hooded by Howard Teitelbaum, DO PhD, MPH, FAOCOPM.

(audience applauding) Reagan L. Dehnbostel, DO also being hooded by Dr. Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) Emily M. Le DO also being hooded by Dr. Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) (audience applauding) Nicholas Jernigan Sampson, DO is being hooded by Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) Olivia A. Spieldenner, DO is being hooded by Dr. Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) Joelle Ryan Victoriano, DO being hooded by Dr. Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) Michael Zakovich, DO being hooded by Dr. Howard Teitelbaum.

(audience applauding) - Abigail Barbara Rachorm, DO will be hooded by her father Dr. James Rachor.

(audience applauding) - Sara Campbell DO will be hooded by her mentor Dr. Nancy Sabal.

(audience applauding) Matthew Chmielewski will be hooded by his father Dr. Gary Chmielewski and his stepfather Dr. Arsen, DPM.

(audience applauding) Dena Bazzi DO will be hooded by her sister Dr. Danielle Saab MD and her sister Dr. Zeinab Bazzi DO.

(audience applauding) Sydney Ohl will be hooded by her father Dr. Dana Ohl.

(audience applauding) Amanda Obi will be hooded by her father-in-law Dr. John Obi.

(audience applauding) - David Connolly, DO will be hooded by his mother, Marianne Connolly Esquire.

(audience applauding) Joshua M. Duren, DO will be hooded by his father Dr. Dana Duren.

(audience applauding) Connor Steven Schury will be hooded by his father, Mark Schury, DO.

(audience applauding) Mahdi Mahmoud, DO will be hooded by his mentor Dr. Hassan Rady.

(audience applauding) - [Man] Mahmoud.

Did you want doctor or esquire?

Go ahead.

John Rogers, DO will be hooded by his uncle Esquire Steven Whitaker.

(audience whooping) (audience applauding) Hussein Hassan Hammoud, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Mohamad Hammoud.

(audience applauding) Hassan Ali Cheaito will be hooded by his sister Dr. Fatima Cheaito (audience applauding) (audience applauding) Peter Gaheed DO will be hooded by his sister Dr. Rama Gaheed.

(audience applauding) Kelsey Koss DO, will be hooded by her mother Dr. Ann Koss and her grandmother Dr. Marlene Harvey.

(audience applauding) Megan Lilly Keen will be hooded by her aunt Dr. Theresa Burl.

(audience cheering) Molly Breen Bondi, DO will be hooded by her mentor Dr. Amy Hia, MD.

(audience applauding) Alekia Vinta, DO will be hooded by her cousin, Dr. (indistinct) MD.

(audience cheering) (audience applauding) Jamila Ali Seroney will be hooded by her friend, Dr. Rasha (indistinct).

(audience cheering) Congratulations.

(indistinct) will be hooded by his father, Dr. (indistinct), MD.

(audience cheering) Nicholas Holland, DO will be hooded by his fiance, Esquire Sarah (indistinct) (audience cheering) Rena Camille (indistinct) will be hooded by her sister, Dr. Renee (indistinct).

(audience cheering) (audience cheering) (indistinct) DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Charles Hassan Ankuni.

(audience cheering) Soad Sala will be hooded by her aunt, Dr. Mesa Basha.

(audience cheering) Deanna Gunter, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Hama Bindo Yalagada.

(audience cheering) Kolude Elhaj, DO will be hooded by her brother, Dr. Hussein Elhaj.

(audience cheering) Alexander J. Blundin, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Paul Blundin and his mother Dr. Elizabeth Blundin.

(audience cheering) Virginia Morgan Ledbetter will be hooded by her sister, Dr. Samantha Ledbetter.

(audience cheering) Julia Machnik, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Amber DUcci.

(audience cheering) Jasmine George, DO will be hooded by her sister-in-law, Dr. Rebecca Chaco.

(audience cheering) Timothy T. Park, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. George Park.

(audience cheering) Nathan Joseph Batista, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Jose Batista.

(audience cheering) Daniel Elon Turner, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Sandor Turner.

(audience cheering) Sam (indistinct), DO will be hooded by his partner, Esquire Kelsey Harrington.

(audience cheering) Joanna Elizabeth Henry, DO will be hooded by her mentor and best friend, Dr. Ariel Haywood.

(audience cheering) Ashley Garvin, DO will be hooded by her cousins, Dr. Tyler Masters and Dr. Shelby Masters.

(audience cheering) Nina Singhal, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Yatinder Singhal and her sister-in-law, Dr. Ayushi Singhal.

(audience cheering) Sabrina Silvestri, DO will be hooded by her sister, Esquire Florian Silvestri and her brother Dr. Joe Silvestri.

(audience cheering) Patrick Boss, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Esquire Clark Johnson.

(audience cheering) Monik Singh, DO will be hooded by his aunt Dr. Pavan Cha.

(audience cheering) Daniel Reebok, DO will be hooded by his mother, Dr. Colleen Weston and his father Dr. Michael Reebok.

(audience cheering) Megan Glazer, DO will be hooded by her aunt, Dr. Colleen Dewitt.

(audience cheering) Kelly Dube, DO will be hooded by her mother, Dr. Linda Dube.

(audience cheering) Jessica Rose Allison, DO will be hooded by her aunt, Dr. Debra Allanis.

(audience cheering) Brooklyn N. Carsten, DO will be hooded by her spouse Esquire Chad Carsrten.

(audience cheering) Cole James Showers, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr. Audrey Lance.

(audience cheering) Bryce Robert Dickman, DO will be hooded by his cousin, Dr. Tyler Ela Brock and his cousin Dr. Ross Ela Brock.

(audience cheering) Rochelle Mohammed Shihuri will be hooded by her brother, Dr. Ali Shirhuri, Pharm D and her brother, Dr. Wasim Shihuri DO.

(audience cheering) - Zachary C. Short, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Travis Short.

(audience cheering) Evan Thayer AR, DO will be hooded by his uncle, Dr. Emad AR and his uncle Dr. Marwan Francis.

(audience cheering) Anthony Lewis Denha, DO will be hooded by his fiance, Dr. Natalie Carana.

(audience cheering) Jenna Marie Sesi, DO will be hooded by her brother, Dr. Christopher Sesi.

(audience cheering) Jacob Theodore Lyon, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. David Lyon, DO.

(audience cheering) Alex M. Kaddis, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Nicholas Kaddis and his sister Dr. Stephanie Kaddis.

(audience cheering) Lauren J. Pelkey, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Timothy Pelkey and her mother, Dr. Leslie Pelkey.

(audience cheering) Sahil S. Sethi, DO will be hooded by his fiance, Dr. Jaz Kiran Carr.

(audience cheering) Rosic Mustafa, DO will be hooded by his sister, Dr. Ariana Mustafa.

(audience cheering) (indistinct), DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Darrun Mashra.

(audience cheering) Madeline C. Bagley, DO will be hooded by her aunt, Dr. Eileen Becar.

(audience cheering) (indistinct) Agoli, DO will be hooded by her sister, Dr. Eglah Agoli.

(audience cheering) Jacob A. Ackerman, DO will be hooded by his mother, Dr. Christine L. Ackerman, DDS.

(audience cheering) Alexa Katherine Hopt, DO will be hooded by her cousin, Melissa Graves Esquire.

(audience cheering) Megan Aaron Gatward, DO will be hooded by her husband, Dr. Alexander Kemp Esquire.

(audience cheering) Selena Isabella Tiberio, DO will be hooded by her sister, Dr. Francesca Tiberio Mucheri, DO.

(audience cheering) Gabriela N. Abraham, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Mark Taylor and her mentor Dr. Todd Brookins.

(audience cheering) Katherine Louise Boss Heckathorn, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Michael Goldfarb.

(audience cheering) Olivia A. Fillo, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Tiffany (indistinct) and her mentor Dr. Daniel Stewart.

(audience cheering) Danush Batiola, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr. Nished Davey.

(audience cheering) Morgan O'Neill, DO will be hooded by her fiance, Dr. James Stathakios.

(audience cheering) Zachary M. Rod, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Michael Rod, DO.

(audience cheering) Sonora S. Desai will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Polovi Bargova.

(audience cheering) Andrew Nicholas Clement Dagenias, DO will be hooded by his brother Dr. Kevin Dagenias.

(audience cheering) Drew Victoria Dagenais, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. George Elena de Sanctus.

(audience cheering) Alexis R. Hurley, DO will be hooded by her uncle, Dr. Dave Mollman.

(audience cheering) Olivia A. Bayless, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Larry Bayless.

(audience cheering) Kaitlyn Y. Anderson, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Jacob Helsel.

(audience cheering) Emmett L. Helsel, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Jacob Helsel.

(audience cheering) Mary Margaret Green, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Robert Green, DPM.

(audience cheering) Alicia (indistinct), DO will be hooded by her mother, Dr. Patrice (indistinct).

(audience cheering) Neha Purucci, DO will be hooded by her mother, Dr. Radha Purucchuri, MD.

(audience cheering) Jonathan S. Chun, DO will be hooded by his cousin, Dr. Benjamin Un.

Harjot Mann, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr. Cameron Hubbard, DO.

(audience cheering) Calvin S. Patel, DO will be hooded by his spouse, Dr. Archna Patel.

(audience cheering) Jonathan Joseph Chaco, DO will be hooded by his spouse, Dr. Jessica Chaco.

(audience cheering) Jacqueline M. Doman, DO will be hooded by her father Daniel Doman Esquire and her sister, Dr. Elizabeth Doman.

(audience cheering) Matthew A. Ajai, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Peter Ajai Esquire.

(audience cheering) Michael M. Nadaff, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr. Scott Bowen.

(audience cheering) Zoe R Sobel, DO will be hooded by her mother, Dr. Shelly Sobel and David Sobel Esquire.

(audience cheering) Daniel J. Hannett, DO will be hooded by his mother, Dr. Lauren Hannett and his uncle Dr. Eric Silberg.

(audience cheering) Razzi Rebecca Block will be hooded by her father, Dr. Nathan Block.

(audience cheering) Henry and Peabody IV, DO will be hooded by his uncle, Dr. James Peabody, (audience cheering) Carol Myvong, DO will be hooded by her brother, Dr. Allen Vong.

(audience cheering) Maher Sabri, DO will be hooded by her spouse, Dr. Mohamad Ali Shahid.

(audience cheering) Abdullah Cubaya, DO will be hooded by his brother, Dr. Amad Cubaya, Pharm D. (audience cheering) Munaj S. Huck, DO will be hooded by his cousin, Dr. Gerard Huck, DO.

(audience cheering) Carissa Ku, DO will be hooded by her sister, Dr. Karen Yu.

(audience cheering) Shwetha Ramchandran, DO will be hooded by her cousin, Dr. Shruti Chandra and her cousin Dr. Harini Vijay.

(audience cheering) Gianna Lynn DeSimone, DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. Dennis DeSimone, DO.

(audience cheering) - (indistinct), DO will be hooded by his grandfather, Dr. Subaru Jagar Lamadi, PhD.

(audience cheering) Mohamed Ali Garada, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Tarik Garada, MD.

(audience cheering) Katarzyna Maria Purzycka, DO will be hooded by her father, (indistinct) and her mother, Dr. (indistinct) Purzycka.

(audience cheering) Erica Razon Ma, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Jasa Withy, DO.

(audience cheering) Cindy Chiong Chu, DO will be hooded by her cousin, Dr. Simon Learn and her cousin Dr. Sherry Xi.

(audience cheering) Aisha Kumar, DO will be hooded by her brother, Dr. Zuher Kumar Esquire and her grandfather, Dr. Musser Han.

(audience cheering) Lance Patrick Moroney, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr. Dominic Alton.

(audience cheering) Kristin Kanja, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Christine Acho.

(audience cheering) Nomin Schwab, DO will be hooded by her sister, Aya Schwab Esquire.

(audience cheering) Joshua Richardson, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Daniel Richardson, MD.

(audience cheering) Samantha Lacrosse, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Robert Tokla.

(audience cheering) Samantha Akuri, DO will be hooded by her father, Robert Akuri Esquire and her uncle Dr. Robert Tokla.

(audience cheering) Jacob Ross, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Michael Ross and his mother Dr. Jean Ross.

(audience cheering) Michael Joseph Wolf, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Stewart Wolf.

(audience cheering) Danny Jordan Shaunz, DO will be hooded by his father, Dan Shaunz Esquire and his sister Hannah Shotten Esquire.

(audience cheering) The next group of students will be hooded by Dr. Nikolai Butch Key, DO.

David Ibrahim, DO.

(audience cheering) Shanara Turner, DO.

(audience cheering) Mohamed (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Kevin David Hughes, DO.

(audience cheering) The next group of students will be hooded by Bret Bielawski, DO.

Scott Faced, DO.

(audience cheering) Sammy Abdelaziz, DO.

(audience cheering) Christina (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Emma Glover, DO.

(audience cheering) Blake Beauchamp, DO.

(audience cheering) The next three graduates will be hooded by Dr. Melissa Benbow, MD.

Amanda McGettigan, DO.

(audience cheering) Heather Marie Hoyer, DO.

(audience cheering) Ryan Karen, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two graduates will be hooded by Dr. Debalina Bandyopadhyay, PhD.

Catherine (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Alison Trap, DO.

(audience cheering) Monica Palande, DO.

(audience cheering) Dorothy Ann Golan Coban, DO will be hooded by, Dr. Michael N. Derry, MDMS.

(audience cheering) Shireen Fazat Drake will be hooded by her aunt, Dr. Suha Alvarez and her sister Dr. Mary Drake.

(audience cheering) (indistinct), DO will be hooded by her father, Dr. (indistinct) (audience cheering) Maya Wyrzykowski, DO will be hooded by her mentor, Dr. Julia Riddle.

(audience cheering) Brandon W. Henry, DO will be hooded by his mentor, Dr.

Crystal Gardner Martin.

(audience cheering) Thomas Yura, DO will be hooded by his aunt, Dr. Amy Hoffman, DO and his aunt Dr. Marie Fluent, DDS.

(audience cheering) Liam Patrick Arnold, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Robert Arnold and his brother Dr. Brendan Arnold.

(audience cheering) Natalie Moore, DO will be hooded by her sister-in-law, Dr. Sarah Moore.

(audience cheering) Sean Krieger, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Glenn Krieger, MD.

(audience cheering) Shervin Meshab, DO will be hooded by his father, Dr. Bahaman Meshab, PhD.

(audience cheering) Bohmi Patel, DO will be hooded by her brother, Dr. J. Brombat.

(audience cheering) The next four graduates will be hooded by, Dr. Graham Atkin, PhD.

Matthew Shields, DO.

(audience cheering) Molina Brown, DO.

(audience cheering) Zachary Yono, DO.

(audience cheering) Luke Tilma, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four graduates will be hooded by, Dr. Lauren Azvedo, DO.

(audience cheering) Brendan O'Dowd, DO.

(audience cheering) Annan Andres Eunice Ot, DO.

(audience cheering) Hunter Janoyak, DO.

(audience cheering) (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) The next four graduates are being hooded by, Dr. Peter Blakemore, DO.

Valerie Benedict, DO.

(audience cheering) Jocelyn Clark, DO.

(audience cheering) Ashley Paige Armstrong, DO.

(audience cheering) Sydney Davenport, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two graduates will be hooded by, Dr. Kim (indistinct), DO.

Rebecca Jacobs, DO.

(audience cheering) Tyler Jacob Jablonsky, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four graduates will be hooded by, Dr. Jamie Lippert, DO.

Avery Cheap, DO.

(audience cheering) Ryan Conlan, DO.

(audience cheering) Brianna Marie Sorenson, DO.

(audience cheering) Paige Moreno, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two graduates will be hooded by, Dr. Larissa Kaufman, MD.

Richard D. Lee, DO.

(audience cheering) Angelica Ortega, DO.

(audience cheering) - The next four graduates will be hooded by, Dr. (indistinct) Benjamin D. Telford, DO.

(audience cheering) Brandon B. Anton, DO.

(audience cheering) Nicholas J. Michael, DO.

(audience cheering) Sahana S. Bommareddy, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four graduates hooded by Dr. Mark Google, DO.

(indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Emma Grace Kwapis, DO.

(audience cheering) Alison D. Fly.

Alison Danielle Fly, DO.

(audience cheering) McKayla Elaine Ulmer, DO.

(audience cheering) The following would be hooded by Dr. Martha Feener, PhD.

Emily Chuckhilo, DO.

(audience cheering) Kimberly H. Ching, DO.

(audience cheering) The following will be hooded by Dr. Steven DeCarlo, PhD.

Isabella (indistinct), DO hooded by her mentor.

(audience cheering) Nadine Abdulatif Shami, DO.

(audience cheering) Megan Rose Kampa, DO.

(audience cheering) The following graduates will be hooded by Lori Dillard, DO.

Jamil Ihad Hadad, DO.

(audience cheering) Aldo Edward Padilla, DO.

(audience cheering) Reem Yasine, DO.

(audience cheering) Fred Ahmadi, DO.

(audience cheering) Elise Torres, DO.

(audience cheering) Claire Elizabeth Spivey, DO is being hooded by, Dr. Shireen Doshi, DO.

(audience cheering) The following graduates will be hooded by, Dr. William Dunker, DO.

Mohanad Ahmad, DO.

(audience cheering) Punit Razdan, DO.

(audience cheering) The following will be hooded by Dr. Jason Gumma, DO.

Leoni A. Denu, DO.

(audience cheering) Alan Ashkar, DO.

(audience cheering) Jacob Leo Armstrong, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four are being hooded by Dr. Shirley Harding.

Zachary W. (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Nicole Ray Ambrosio, DO.

(audience cheering) Addie Lorraine Shoemaker, DO.

(audience cheering) Jordan Most, DO.

(audience cheering) The next graduates hooded by Dr. David Hickling, DO.

Tony Pache, DO.

(audience cheering) Julian Kane Kuga, DO.

(audience cheering) Alexander Platt Cook, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four will be hooded by Dr. Mary Hughes, DO.

Ali Degani, DO.

(audience cheering) Noah Vincent Fiala, DO.

(audience cheering) (indistinct) David, DO.

(audience cheering) Samuel Andrew Biddle, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two graduates hooded by Dr. Clarence Nicodemus, DO, PhD.

Kathleen Nicole Ryan, DO.

(audience cheering) Ashraf Ghoussaini.

(audience cheering) The next two will be hooded by Dr. Carol Wilkins, DO.

William Slattery, DO.

(audience cheering) Levi Snoeyink, DO.

(audience cheering) Kyle Matthew Riley, DO is being hooded by, Dr. Sarah Tilden, PhD.

(audience cheering) The next three will be hooded by Dr. Mangola Satsfan.

(indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Nathan Peck, DO.

(audience cheering) Priyanka Sankorini, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two graduates hooded by Dr. Christina Rostini.

Kerry (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Ryan Martus, DO.

(audience cheering) The next three will be hooded by Dr. Lawrence Procop, DO.

Jennifer Lara, DO.

(audience cheering) Dylan Rakoczy, DO.

(audience cheering) McKayla Nicole Vitug, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two will be hooded by Dr. David Kaufman.

Catherine Bailey, DO.

(audience cheering) Jenny (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) The next graduates will be hooded by Dr. Jed Megan, DO.

Nicholas Whalen, DO.

(audience cheering) Grace Ignatius, DO.

(audience cheering) Jordan Emery, DO.

(audience cheering) The next graduates hooded by Dr. Kerry Nazarov, PhD.

Kayla Rucker, DO.

(audience cheering) Sujit Bajaj, DO.

(audience cheering) The following will be hooded by Dr. John Popovich, DPT, PhD.

Kiara McArag, DO.

(audience cheering) Hannah Kirschman, DO.

(audience cheering) The next two will be hooded by Dr. Brian Shoote, PhD.

Abishek Shastri, DO.

(audience cheering) Daniel Schmidt, DO.

(audience cheering) Joseph Steele, DO is being hooded by, Dr. Kenneth Stringer, DO.

(audience cheering) The next four will be hooded by Dr. John Taylor.

Saidi Brent Smiles, DO.

(audience cheering) Kristen Shepherd, DO.

(audience cheering) Bilal Ali, DO.

Logan Austin, DO.

(audience cheering) The next three are being hooded by Dr. John Taylor, PhD.

Christian Mascaro, DO.

(audience cheering) Ryan (indistinct), DO.

(audience cheering) Madeline Nora Dodson Garrett, DO.

(audience cheering) The following will be hooded by Dr. Molly Asiedo, EdD.

Saba Waga, DO.

(audience cheering) Mina Wasif, DO.

(audience cheering) - Do I need to announce your name?

- Go ahead.

Maya Christian Carris Blake, DO, PhD will be hooded by her father-in-law, Dr. Randall Blake.

Maya Christian K. Blake, DO, PhD.

PhD Pharmacology and Toxicology.

Dissertation, The Impact of EAP One Functions on Innate and Adaptive Immunity in Human Disease Models.

Advisor, Andrea Amalfitano, DO, PhD, Professor Department of Microbiology, Genetics and Immunology.

(audience cheering) Shan Yung, DO,PhD is being hooded by his mentor, Dr. Scott Randall, DO.

PhD Microbiology, Genetics and Immunology.

Dissertation, Exploring the Function (indistinct) in 33-CGAMP Phage Defense Signaling in (indistinct).

Advisor Christopher Waters PhD, Professor Microbiology Genetics and Immunology.

(audience cheering) Luca Kaiser, DO, PhD will be hooded by his aunt, Rice Kirk Esquire.

Luca Kaiser, DO, PhD.

PhD Pharmacology and Toxicology.

Dissertation, the Impact of the NRF2 Activators, Arsenic Trioxide and Turt-Butylhydroquinone on B-cell Function.

Advisor, Cheryl Rockwell, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology.

(audience cheering) Tuhan Quinn Yang, DO, PhD will be hooded by her mother, Dr. Yip Lay, MD and her sister Dr. Quinn Yang, DO, PhD.

(indistinct) DO, PhD, PhD Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Dissertation, Circadian Rhythms in Late Pregnancy: A role in the Reproductive Axis Uterine Contractions and Preterm Labor.

Advisor Hannah Hoffman, PhD.

Assistant Professor, Department of Animal Sciences.

(audience applauding) Athanasios (indistinct) DO, PhD will be hooded by his classmate, Dr. Alex Morrow.

Athanasios (indistinct) DO, PhD.

PhD Cell and Molecular Biology.

Dissertation, The Influence of Dietary Obesity on Feeding Controlled by GHSR Expressing Cells in the Ventral Hippocampus.

Advisor, Alex Johnson, PhD, Associate Professor Department of Psychology.

Alexander M. Morro, DO, PhD will be hooded by her classmate, Dr. Lindsay Reich.

Alexandra M. Morro, DO PhD, PhD Physiology.

Dissertation, Expression and Roles of Blasts Lineage Determining Genes during Somatic Cell Reprogramming.

Advisor, Amy Ralston, PhD, Professor and Associate Dean College of Natural Sciences.

(audience cheering) Lindsay Reich, DO, PhD will be hooded by her classmate, Dr. Athanasios (indistinct).

Lindsay A. Reich, DO, PhD.

PhD Pharmacology and Toxicology.

Dissertation, Anti-tumor Activity of Novel RXR Agonists.

Advisor, Karen Libby PhD, Adjunct Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology.

(audience cheering) - This is my favorite part.

Class of 2024, please rise.

(audience cheering) On behalf of the President of Michigan State University who has delegated to me the authority of the state of Michigan vested in the board of trustees I confer upon all of you the degree for which you have been recommended with all the rights and distinctions to which they entitle you.

According to custom, you may now move your tassels from the right side of your caps to the left.

(audience cheering) Congratulations, doctors you are now Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine alumni.

(audience cheering) This act represents the conclusion of a great achievement and marks the beginning of a lifetime of dedicated service to your fellow men and women.

It's an achievement worthy of celebration and we're here today to celebrate this fact with you.

I ask the Vice Presidents of the class, Dr. Tess Bradley, Dr. Christine Buchanan and Dr. Anthony Koch to come forward and administer the osteopathic pledge to their peers.

I administered the osteopathic pledge to them before the ceremony.

(audience cheering) - Hello everyone.

Just a quick side note before we say the pledge, I would just quickly like to acknowledge our class President Maria Maglio.

She has been a tireless advocate for the Class of 2024 and the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Let's give her a hand.

(audience cheering) Now, we ask the Class of 2024 to stand and invite any other osteopathic physicians here today to rise.

Raise your right hand to read the osteopathic pledge, which you will find in the program.

Please read along with us.

When finished, please be seated.

As members of the osteopathic medical profession in an effort to instill loyalty and strengthen the profession, we recall the tenets on which this profession is founded.

The dynamic interaction of mind, body, and spirit, the body's ability to heal itself, the primary role of the musculoskeletal system and preventive medicine as the key to maintain health.

We recognize the work our predecessors have accomplished in building the profession and we commit ourselves to continuing that work.

I pledge to provide compassionate quality care to my patients, partner with them to promote health, display integrity and professionalism throughout my career, advance the philosophy, practice, and science of osteopathic medicine, continue lifelong learning, support my profession with loyalty and action, word and deed, and live each day as an example of what an osteopathic physician should be.

(audience cheering) - Wow, what a day.

Thank you doctors.

Would the graduates please take a moment to turn around and acknowledge the people here today that have supported you along this journey.

(audience cheering) And finally, would you please take a moment to look towards the back of the program for the names of the award recipients presented at this afternoon's banquet and award ceremony and give a round of applause for those recipients.

(audience cheering) I am so proud to stand here today as your dean and witness this momentous occasion.

Thank you so much for all your hard work, your dedication, your resilience, and the sacrifice in pursuing this vocation.

I admire you all and look forward to continuing our connection as you are now alumni of MSUCOM.

With those thoughts, I offer you my congratulations and I wish you all the luck.

Go green.

(audience cheering) Our ceremony has concluded and I ask that you just remain seated until the platform party has recessed and the COM staff will then dismiss the rows.

The Breslin Center will remain open for one hour after the end of this ceremony.

Be safe.

(audience cheering) (cheerful music)