2004 Commencement: More reasons than ever to celebrate!
 Years of record-setting graduating classes and capacity crowds
of families and friends led to a change in venue for our 31st
annual Commencement.
Instead of packing Will Rogers Auditorium across the street
from the HSC campus, we enjoyed the spacious facilities at
the Fort Worth Convention Center for our May 15 graduation
ceremony and the President’s Reception afterwards.
A record-breaking 257 graduates crossed the stage – 24
of them hooded by a family member who also holds a doctoral
degree (a “new tradition” begun in 2001). Our newest
alumni include: 116 new DOs and 26 new PAs from the Texas College
of Osteopathic Medicine; 31 MS degree recipients and 11 PhDs
from the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences; 61 MPH recipients
and the first four DrPH grads from the School of Public Health;
and four dual-degree DO/MS recipients, three dual-degree DO/PhD
recipients, and the health science center’s first PA/PhD.
CLICK BELOW FOR COMPLETE ROSTERS OF THE 2004 GRADUATES, BY SCHOOL/PROGRAM.
Sarah Hossman, who received her master of public health degree
during the ceremony, spoke on behalf of the graduates.
She said professionals in the fields of medicine, science
and public health have traditionally worked separately, but
current health issues have made collaboration essential to
accomplishing their goals.
“The key to solving the complex issues that we face
is going to be found in us working together,” Hossman
said. “A collaborative effort will have a more compounding
effect on health than an individual effort. We each have skills
the others need.”
Hossman reminded her fellow graduates to stay focused on
the big picture. “We are charged with protecting and
promoting health in our communities,” she said. “I
think this is the most important task of them all, and I know
you will not take it lightly.”
 Albert Hawkins III, MPA, executive commissioner of the Texas
Health and Human Services Commission, used his keynote address
to urge the graduates to face today’s daunting health
care challenges head-on.
“Devote yourselves to finding new ways to solve old
problems and allow your medical knowledge to be tempered by
a genuine care for those you serve,” he said.
Hawkins urged graduates not to depend on technology too much. “It
is your duty to make sure that the tools used to enhance the
quality of medical care not be allowed to dominate to the point
of eroding personal care,” he said.
“By far, the most critical issue for our health care
system today is the need to assure access to care. We simply
cannot allow inequalities of wealth to be accepted as justification
for disparities in health care,” Hawkins said. “I
petition you today to find new ways to solve old problems.”
“Today’s health care system strains to serve a growing
and diverse population while enduring constant economic pressures,” he
said. “I can assure you that your knowledge, skills and
talents are sorely needed.” |
