StaffDear Fellow Alumni,
This May, our alma mater sent 211 new physicians out into the world. The members of the Class of 2017 are spread across the country in 38 states and are pursuing a diverse group of specialties. However wide the variety of their chosen fields, I have the utmost confidence that they will find at least one thing they have in common with each other and with each of us – an extreme appreciation for the outstanding education they received at the Medical College of Georgia.
Our fellow graduates commonly tell me that when they reached their residency programs, they felt extremely well-prepared for the next step in their careers — and that MCG taught them well, not only about medicine, but about professional life after medical school. That was certainly true for me when I started my family medicine residency at Spartanburg General Hospital in 1973.
When I eventually came back to our alma mater and served as associate dean of student affairs for nearly two decades, it wasn’t uncommon for me to interact with residency program directors around the country. The message was and is the same – MCG graduates were, and still are, some of the best.
I believe that the success of our graduates is, in large part, due to the many dedicated faculty at our medical school. I certainly remember the greats who influenced me, like Dr. Coleman King, Dr. William Moretz, Dr. Harold Engler, Dr. Dorothy Hahn, Dr. Mary Jo Carter, Dr. Robert Ellison, Dr. Lois Ellison, Dr. Joe Bailey, Dr. Paul Webster, Dr. Joe Griffin – the list goes on. They were icons to me, just like so many of you who teach our students are to them.
As the newest president of the MCG Alumni Association, I am also proud to be able to help support our students through programs like our annual regional receptions, dinners hosted by our fellow alums across our state, and the HOST program, which helps students connect with MCG alums across the country while they interview for potential residency programs. The support you all give our students through these programs and more is phenomenal.
It is my hope that — even as we spread our graduates around the country — they, like so many of you, will remain loyal and true to the Medical College of Georgia.
