Sanford School of Medicine Welcomes Class of 2029 with White Coat Ceremony
The White Coat ceremony is a rite held at medical schools across the nation to recognize the medical education journey the students are about to begin.
Of the 71 students comprising the Class of 2029, 56% of the class is female; 44% is male, with a collective average age of 24.3 years. The group represents 29 universities and 21 South Dakota high schools. Thirty percent come from a rural background, while 55% hail from communities with fewer than 30,000 residents.
Matthew Simmons, M.D., retired dean of the Sanford School of Medicine’s Rapid City campus and professor emeritus, delivered an address to the group titled “White Coats and the Stories We Seek.”
During his address, he offered wisdom to the Class of 2029: “You have the choice to be motivated by profit or by service, but only service will allow you to flourish,” he said. “Empathy is just as important as exams, tests and prescriptions.”
Deans from the three SSOM campuses, Dr. Carolyn Gilbertson (Sioux Falls), Dr. April Willman (Yankton) and Dr. Jennifer Hasvold (Rapid City), as well as Associate Dean of Medical Student affairs Dr. Suzanne Reuter and Associate Dean of rural medicine Dr. Jason Wickersham, coated the new students.
The ceremony closed with the Affirmation of the Physician recitation, led by South Dakota State Medical Association past president, Dr. Jennifer Tinguely.
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