帝王会所

The 帝王会所 Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine honored the resilience and promise of its graduating students at the annual Inclusion Celebration, held May 9, at Heritage Hall in Athens. Sponsored by the Student National Medical Association, the event paid tribute to students who have overcome significant barriers to earn their medical degrees and spotlighted the potential for graduates to use their life experiences and skills to make a positive impact on health care.

The ceremony featured remarks from faculty, students and a pioneering leader in osteopathic medicine, Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O. She became the first Black woman to serve as dean of a U.S. medical school when she joined the 帝王会所 Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1993. During her keynote address, Ross-Lee, a longtime champion for health equity and access, called upon the graduates to meet the challenges of modern medicine with wisdom, pride and vision.

鈥淏ecoming a physician is not just a career choice, it is a high calling with awesome responsibilities,鈥� Ross-Lee said. 鈥淔rom this day forward, it is an immutable part of who you are and who you will always be鈥攍ike your race, ethnicity or gender鈥o other profession is so honored.鈥�

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Ross-Lee鈥檚 message was framed by what she called the 鈥淔our Be鈥檚鈥�: Be Good, Be Wise, Be Proud, and Be Visionary鈥攅ach reflecting a deep call to action for future osteopathic physicians to confront challenges related to access, cost and quality in health care and to lead the profession with both skill and compassion.

Heritage College Chief Inclusion Officer Tanisha King, Ph.D., emphasized the importance of honoring one's background while committing to the highest standards of patient care.

鈥淎s a first-generation or underrepresented physician, it is imperative that you keep these teachings with you,鈥� King said. 鈥淵our patients deserve a physician that will treat them in the way in which the oath you take states: with dignity and respect.鈥�

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A highlight of the celebration came from the words of Class of 2025 graduate Shamone Gore Panter, D.O., who shared her deeply personal journey from hardship to healing, underscoring the strength that comes from lived experience.

鈥淚f someone had told the 7-year-old girl living in a Massachusetts motel room on New Year鈥檚 Eve in 1986 that she would one day stand before a room full of graduating doctors鈥攎any who look like her, come from where she came from, and carry the same generational weight鈥攕he wouldn鈥檛 have believed it,鈥� Gore Panter said. 鈥淏ut that girl was me.鈥�

In her address, she recounted a life shaped by trauma, perseverance and ultimately, purpose. Her words celebrated not only her journey, but those of her fellow graduates.

鈥淥ur presence in these white coats didn鈥檛 come easily. For many of us, it came with scars鈥n all of it, I came to understand that my pain didn鈥檛 disqualify me from medicine鈥攊t prepared me for it,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ecause some of us don鈥檛 just learn medicine from textbooks鈥攚e live it. We know what it鈥檚 like to be misdiagnosed, dismissed or made to feel invisible. And that鈥檚 why we will change this system. I didn鈥檛 choose medicine because it was easy. I chose it because I鈥檝e seen what happens when people like us don鈥檛 have a seat at the table.  I chose family medicine鈥攁nd osteopathic medicine specifically鈥攂ecause D.O.s don鈥檛 just treat symptoms. We treat people. We see bodies, yes鈥攂ut we also see stories.鈥�

She concluded with a call to reshape the future of health care by bringing humanity back into the profession.

鈥淲e are not statistics. We are not 鈥榚xceptions.鈥� We are the long-overdue correction to a system that has failed too many for too long鈥e鈥檝e walked through fire to get here鈥攁nd fire didn鈥檛 destroy us. It refined us鈥e are the future of medicine. We are the bridge between science and soul. We are what healing looks like when it grows from struggle.鈥�

The Inclusion Celebration recognized the achievements of students overcoming obstacles but also reaffirmed the college鈥檚 commitment to train the next generation of osteopathic physicians.

As Ross-Lee concluded, 鈥淵ou hold the future in your hands.鈥�

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