Cohort 2023 ended with a great clinical year. We are very proud of these group of students. We continued to get such great feedback on this group of students out in many locations, most of which were in our immediate area, but there are always some distant rotations that are wonderful experiences. This year we had students in rotations throughout Missouri, with a few rotations in Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Oregon. We had more alumni preceptors than ever, and we always excited to add more alumni to our growing list of preceptors. This seemed to be a particularly good year for students getting offered jobs early on in the fall semester. It is so exciting to see where each student chooses to start their career as a PA. Many students took positions in locations where they had done rotations this year.
Graduation week was a busy one, but one that ended with the graduation reception that was well attended by students and their families as well as the graduation ceremony on Friday. We had several preceptors who were able to attend the graduation reception this year, which was great.
Six students attended the CoxHealth Second Annual Advanced Practice Provider Symposium on September 29th. These students were able to attend this symposium due to a generous donation by an alumnus of our program. This was an all-day symposium and was a great opportunity for additional learning for our students.
We were never short on volunteers when asking for help for a number of events in 2023, whether it be open houses, interview sessions, or other events. Jordan Carter, Ashleigh Sharkey, and Regan Wilson all volunteered to be proctors for an oral presentation exercise for the incoming clinical cohort at their orientation. We also had participation in this orientation event by some alumni and preceptors: Jaimie Wood, Travis Bell, Brock Frazier, and Marc Havlicek. Regan Wilson volunteered to assist Professor Cook, Mrs. Snow, and Heather Booth put on an Exploratory Event with AHEC for pre-PA students, as well as any other health professions students.
Some of the faculty attended the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA) Education Forum in October in New Orleans. The faculty participated in a variety of workshops with other PA educators with the goal of enhancing the curriculum and processes throughout the program. The Keynote speaker was Crystal Washington, who spoke on “The Future is NOW: Technology & Trends That Will Revolutionize Post-Graduate Education.” She was excellent. The faculty got to visit with alumnus, Cassidy McCandless at the Forum. It’s always great to see our students and alumni in leadership roles.
Class of 2023 links