The Texas Christian University community — alumni, students, faculty and staff — is known for our compassionate and principled leadership in the global community.

With the top-ranked Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences and the acclaimed TCU Pre-Health Professions Institute, TCU has long been charting a course into the future of wellness. The TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine is an important addition to our enduring tradition of leadership in health care.

The TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine Class of 2023 includes 60 future physicians. Courtesy of the TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine

What the 60 students in the medical school’s inaugural class, known as the Dorman Scholars, will tell you is that theirs is not a typical medical education.

And that’s fortunate because we are not living in typical times.

We’re seeing firsthand that the vision and principles behind our collaborative MD school are exactly what’s needed for a constantly evolving medical field, an uncertain public health landscape and a changing society.

Our medical school students are in training to be the next generation of empathetic physicians through hands-on scholarship, mentorship and new methods of learning. When the COVID-19 crisis landed in North Texas, the School of Medicine — and all of TCU’s schools and colleges — quickly transitioned to a fully technological learning environment while allowing students to become participants in real-time solutions to a public health emergency.

Medical student Quinn Losefsky donated blood during the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Mark Graham

These future physicians immediately took an active role in helping the community through a virtual blood drive and the collection and donation of personal protective equipment. They witnessed their faculty disseminating useful coronavirus information through Facebook Live forums when communication with the public was critical.

Augmenting their studies with the practical challenges of a global pandemic has underscored how important these students are to the nation, which is facing an estimated shortfall of 122,000 doctors by 2032. The graduates of the Class of 2023 and those who follow will be prepared to take their place in the world as compassionate, caring physicians with superb communication skills and a lifetime connection to learning and mentoring.

These students have had a remarkable year, and not just because of the experience gained through the COVID-19 pandemic. Their program is based on scholarly collaboration and teamwork, not competitiveness. These students have come from all over the country to grow together as future colleagues, learning by example and through human interaction to solve problems and alleviate suffering while valuing every patient. It’s an inspiring story, and it couldn’t be more perfectly timed.

Join this journey and meet six of our medical school students. Click to read the story. They are the future. Lead On!

Go Frogs,

Victor J. Boschini, Jr.

10th Chancellor
v.boschini@tcu.edu