
MSM’s 36th Commencement Exercises
10 a.m., Saturday, May 16, 2020
#MSM2020Commencement #MSM2020Grads
Video View Virtual Commencement Playback
Amid the continued uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the health and safety of our students, trainees, faculty, and staff remain our highest priorities. Out of an abundance of caution, and in keeping with federal and CDC guidelines, we have made many adjustments to our institutional operations to ensure they remain safe.
Commencement season— a joyous celebration for the entire Morehouse School of Medicine community, including students, graduates, faculty, staff, and alumni, as well as graduate’s family members and friends, our institutional partners, MSM Board of Trustee members and esteemed speakers—we’ve carefully assessed potential challenges and opportunities for this year’s celebration.
In consultation with MSM’s trustees, executive leadership team and student leaders, President and Dean Valerie Montgomery Rice, MD, announced that MSM modified its 36th Commencement exercises to a virtual ceremony!
“It is certainly a difficult decision for us all,” said Dr. Montgomery Rice. “However, we are planning an interactive virtual ceremony that allows us to celebrate our graduates in real-time, providing them and their families with a memorable experience that adheres to best practices regarding social distancing.”
Social Media Engagement Kit
Graduates, families, friends, faculty, staff and partners—As valuable members of the MSM Community, please help us celebrate this momentous celebration.
By connecting and engaging with us online, you will be providing much-deserved support to all of our graduates heading into the healthcare, biomedical, and public health workforces that need them now, more than ever.
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Commencement Week Events
All events taking place virtually. We will publicly live-stream the Commencement ceremony
here Saturday. All other events are by invitation, with instructions provided directly
to participants.
By These Healing Hands
10 A.M., FRIDAY, MAY 15
Class Day
3 P.M., FRIDAY, MAY 15
Commencement
10 A.M., SATURDAY, MAY 16
Alumni Awards and Reunion Celebration
2 P.M., SUNDAY, MAY 17
Commencement Speaker
Gary H. Gibbons, M.D., is Director of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where he oversees the third largest institute at the NIH, with an annual budget of approximately $3 billion and a staff of nearly 2,100 federal employees, contractors, and volunteers. NHLBI provides global leadership for research, training, and education programs to promote the prevention and treatment of heart, lung, and blood diseases and enhance the health of all individuals so that they can live longer and more fulfilling lives.
To deliver the ceremony, MSM is partnering with Shared Studios, a New York City-based company that “exists to create meaningful human connections
between people separated by distance and difference.” They specialize in creating
online portals that enable one to, in their words, “enter … and come face-to-face
with someone in a distant place – as though in the same room.”
“MSM’s Commencement committee is doing everything possible to recreate – or improve on – the elements of MSM’s traditional ceremony,” says Ngozi Anachabe, MD, associate dean, Admissions & Student Affairs. This includes such elements as music, a Commencement speaker, awarding of degrees and hooding, etc., while also allowing for live interaction among participants and audience members. Students will be able to share photos, videos, shout-outs, and more ahead of the ceremony, enabling producers to create a more personalized experience.
MSM leaders have similar plans to convert other traditional Commencement weekend activities such as Class Day, By These Healing Hands, and the alumni reunion event to an online format.
Please check back here regularly for updates.
Past Commencements
- 2019 - 35th Commencement Ceremony
- 2018 - Health Equity Leader Dayna Matthew to Deliver 34th Morehouse School of Medicine Commencement Address
- 2017 - Civil Rights Icon Rep. John Lewis Delivers Morehouse School of Medicine's 33rd Commencement Address
- 2016 - Morehouse School of Medicine Graduates 116 at 32nd Commencement
- 2015 - Former U.S. Congresswoman Donna M. Christensen Delivers Morehouse School of Medicine's 31st Commencement Address