White Coat Ceremony, Class of 2011
Washington State University, College of Veterinary Medicine
welcomed the Class of 2011 to the Veterinary
Medical Profession at the 9th Annual Convocation,
also known as the White Coat Ceremony on Friday, August 17, 2007.
History of the White Coat Ceremony
The White Coat Ceremony, established by Dr. Arnold Gold at Columbia
University Medical School in 1993, was designed to impress upon students,
physicians and the public the important symbolic role of the white coat in
patient-doctor interactions. Gold argued that students were reciting the
Hippocratic Oath four years too late-upon their graduation from medical
school. He felt the oath and the conferring of white coats would be better
done at the start of medical school, when students receive their first
exposure to clinical medicine. The White Coat Ceremony provides a mechanism
by which values that are key to our profession can be openly articulated and
carefully considered in the company of peers, parents, partners and faculty.
The College of Veterinary Medicine has embraced
the spirit of this exercise. You will find that our ceremony has been
appropriately modified for veterinary medical students. It includes an
induction into the Veterinary Medical College, whereupon each student will
receive a coat, generously donated by the Idaho and Washington State
Veterinary Medical Associations. As a group, the students recite the
“Veterinary Student Oath”.
The Veterinary Student Oath (adapted from the
AVMA
Veterinarian's Oath)
As a veterinary student in the Washington State University College of
Veterinary Medicine, I promise to work conscientiously to develop my
scientific and medical knowledge and skills for the benefit of society
through the protection of animal health, the relief of animal suffering, the
conservation of animal resources, the promotion of public health, and the
advancement of medical knowledge.
Throughout my time here as a student, I will conduct myself with dignity and
professionalism, and in keeping with the principles of veterinary medical
ethics. I accept as a lifelong obligation the continual improvement of my
professional knowledge and competence.
Program Dignitaries
- Dr. Warwick Bayly, Dean
- Dr. Leslie Sprunger,
Associate Dean of Student
& Academic Affairs
- Dr. Steve Hines
Associate Dean of
Student & Academic Affairs
-
Dr. Patricia Talcott, Director of Admissions
- Dr. Robert Thompson, President-elect ,
Washington State Veterinary Medical Association (WSVMA)
- Dr. Christopher Schneider, Idaho
Veterinary Medical Association (IVMA)
- Dr. Barry Watson, Hill’s Pet Nutrition
- Dr. Dale Hancock, Admission's Committee
- Dr. Mike Varnum, Admission's Committee
- Dr. Steve Greene, Acting Department Chair,
Veterinary Clinical Sciences
- Dr. Rick DeBowes, Associate Dean, Development and
External Relations
- Dr. Bryan Slinker, Chair, Department of
Veterinary & Comparative Anatomy , Pharmacology
& Physiology
- Dr. David Prieur, Chair, Department of Veterinary
Microbiology and Pathology
Keynote Address
Colonel John L Poppe, DVM
US Army Veterinary Corps Commander
Pacific Regional Veterinary Command
John L. Poppe is a native of Mount Vernon, Washington where he grew up on a
dairy farm. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science in 1981
and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 1986 from Washington State
University. He began his veterinary career as an associate veterinarian in a
small animal practice in Seattle before joining the US Army Veterinary Corps in
1987. Since joining the Army he has been stationed at Brunswick, Maine; Seoul,
Korea; Incirlik, Turkey; Fort Lewis, Washington; San Antonio, Texas; Fort Bragg,
North Carolina; San Diego, California; and now in Honolulu, Hawaii. In addition
to these duty assignments, he has deployed to many countries which include
Botswana, Grenada, Thailand, and Iraq. In 1992, he attended Tulane University
receiving a Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology and became a Diplomate of
the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine. He has been happily
married to his wife Denise, who is also a Cougar, since 1988 and they have three
future Cougars, Janie, George, and Hollis.
Sponsored by
Hills Pet Nutrition Inc.
Washington
State Veterinary Medical Association
Idaho
Veterinary Medical Association
White Coat Contributors for 2007
Dr. Thomas Fry
Dr. William Holleman
Dr. Mick and Sheryl McDevitt
Dr. Eric Anderson
Dr. Rob McMonigle
Dr. Bob Wuerth
Drs. Charles and Nancy Leathers
Dr. Joe Peterson
Dr. John Serratore
Greg Hanon
Drs. Terry Richards, Edward Kowitz, and Kim Venable - Colville Animal Hospital
Southwest Washington Veterinary Medical Association
Dr. Robert Gilpin
Drs. Mike Burdette, Jessica Adams and Steve Harroun (Chewelah Vet Clinic)
Inland Empire Veterinary Medical Association (Dr. Richard Whipps)
Drs. Debi Wallingford and Kit Bowerman
Drs. Marianne Randall and Tracy King
Dr. Charles Lohr
Dr. Clive Gay
Dr. John T. Griffith
Dr. Rick and Pam DeBowes
Dr. Kari M. Johnson
Dr. Cheri Fleming
Dr. Maria Baker
Dr. Kim Nicholas
Dr. Susan Thorson
Dr. Jerold D. Gemar
Dr. Earl Moore
Drs. Gerald Moon and Patricia Robinett and staff of Value Vet Animal Clinic,
Everett
Dr. Craig Vance
Dr. Jerry Pospisil
Dr. Gerald Ponti
Dr. Suzy Pence
Dr. Cindy Alexander
Dr. Linda Robinette
Last Edited: Sep 10, 2007 3:16 PM
