M.D. White Coat Ceremony 2025
A legacy in the making
John W. Traubert White Coat Ceremony
The White Coat Ceremony was developed by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation of New York, and was initiated for the entering class of the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Columbia University on August 20, 1993. The original concept was to clarify for students, prior to their entrance into the medical community, that a physician’s responsibility is twofold; to take care of patients and to care for patients. This ceremony has since been established at nearly all the nation’s medical schools, with various adaptations.
At WVU, our first ceremony, held on January 26, 1996, deferred from the original concept. It honored second-year students and marked the transition from the basic sciences to clinical sciences, from reading about illness and disease to diagnosing it; from learning about treatments to prescribing them.
However, with changes in medical education, that transition point is becoming less defined. Patient contact coming early on in training, meshing with the obvious importance and relevance of the basic sciences, broadens the concept of WVU’s ceremony and more clearly defines its purpose.
In 1999, upon retirement of Dean of Students, John W. Traubert, the ceremony was named in his honor.
Saturday, March 15, 2025
Keynote Speaker
Jeff Cannon, M.D.
M.D. Degree
“I cannot emphasize enough how well-prepared I was for residency thanks to the comprehensive education I received at WVU.”
Class of 2027
The following medical students earned their white coats this year.
- Kamil Abbas
- Brian Adlard
- Fahad AlHomoud
- Ryleigh Barrett
- Henna Bhatia
- Lauren Bish
- Ryan Blake
- Ashley Booth
- Madeline Bush
- Kylie Bushko
- Enrique Carrera
- Hibba Chaudhry
- Regan Cochran
- Darby Criss
- Courtney Crivelli
- Nazli Darian
- Carrie Dean
- Marissa Lynne Della-Giustina
- Patrick Duffy
- Nathaniel Charles Dunham
- Gary Nathaniel Edwards
- Phillip Englund
- Madison Faith Evick
- Victoria Fanucci
- Jordan Fernald
- Matthew Fleshman
- David Fletcher
- Kennedy Abigail Fowler
- Conner Funke
- Oddai Gharib
- Shayan Ghodsi
- Dylan Goodman
- Wenjuan Gu
- Daniel Timothy Harrast
- Waylon Henggeler
- Jacob Herriott
- Justin Tyler Hickey
- Bryan Ho
- Matthew Scott Hudson
- Kareem Ibrahim-Bacha
- Timothy Johnson
- Mohammad Kali
- Casey Star Kauffman
- Evan Kiska
- Nicholas Koumontzis
- Nicholas Lemon
- Erika Lerfald
- Ashley Claire Linder
- Kayla Liptrap
- Laura Loeffelbein
- Audrey Louden
- Alexandria Lusk
- Joseph McNabb
- Alex McOsker
- Benjamin Merzouk
- Emma Alexandra Miller
- Abigail Mitchell
- Zoe Mollencop
- Ana Clara Morellato Alcantara
- Sonia-Frida Ndifon
- Luke Nealley
- Brady Nicewarner
- Timothy Nield
- Emily Pack
- Lowell Parascandola
- Bryson Parker
- Bianca Laila Pate
- Logan Peck
- Wade Powers
- Destiny Preble
- Hakam Rajjoub
- Sydney Rashid
- Aaron Richardson
- Derrick Riner
- Kathryn Schwartzman
- Andrew Seman
- Madison Seman
- Jacob Shakesprere
- Dylan Shaver
- Bartholomew Mark Shea, Jr.
- James Mason Shockley
- Ashley Tasz
- Victoria Terry
- Arjun Tomer
- Evan Trent
- Cassidy Vail
- Samuel Van Beck
- Samantha Brooke Walker
- Torin Walters
- Mary Wardrop
- Ireland Shea Wayt
- Rhett Christian White
- Justin James Williams
- Stephen Williams
- Lindsay Wilson
- Logan Woodburn
- Jonathan Yaari
- Kayla Young
- Nikolette Zanolli
- Haley Zawitoski
- Brent Zutaut
Scenes from the day
View photo galleries from the event: University Relations photos and Student Services photos.
Jacob Herriott
M.D. Degree
“Staying at WVU afforded me the opportunity to obtain a state-of-the-art medical education, while also allowing me to give back to this community and to those I consider friends and neighbors by providing them with medical care.”
Ireland Wayt
M.D. Degree
“I am very proud to be from West Virginia and plan to stay here and practice for the rest of my life. This state needs strong leaders to help improve and innovate our healthcare system and provide the best patient care possible. I would be honored to be a part of that team.”
Ryan Blake
M.D. Degree
“During my time as nursing aide, I was truly able to tell how appreciative the patients were in this specific work environment and wanted to be the difference I saw.”
Explore More
Learn more about our M.D. White Coat Tradition
CEREMONY HISTORY
WVU’s White Coat Ceremony, strategically positioned in the second year of training, is designed to:
- help students reaffirm their reasons for choosing medicine as their lives’ work
- allow students to express their commitment to becoming technically excellent and professionally compassionate with patients
- reinforce the importance of the doctor-patient relationship and the relevance of the white coat as a “cloak of compassion”
BACKGROUND
- August 20, 1993 -- The White Coat Ceremony was developed by the Arnold P. Gold Foundation of New York, and was initiated for the entering class of the College of Physicians & Surgeons of Columbia University. The original concept was to clarify for students, prior to their entrance into the medical community, that a physician’s responsibility is twofold; to take care of patients and to care for patients.
- January 26, 1996 -- WVU's first ceremony was held, and it deferred from the original concept. It honored second-year students and marked the transition from the basic sciences to clinical sciences, from reading about illness and disease to diagnosing it; from learning about treatments to prescribing them. However, with changes in medical education, that transition point is becoming less defined. Patient contact coming early on in training, meshing with the obvious importance and relevance of the basic sciences, broadens the concept of WVU’s ceremony and more clearly defines its purpose.
- 1999 -- upon retirement of Dean of Students, John W. Traubert, the ceremony was named in his honor.
GET INVOLVED -- SPONSOR A STUDENT
Our School of Medicine MD alumni and current faculty have a unique opportunity to directly affect and leave a positive, lasting impression on a future physician. By sponsoring a white coat, you can leave a note of encouragement and impart valuable wisdom that the students can take into the clinic with them as they begin caring for patients.
The ceremony is also sponsored in part by WVU Medicine.
Alumni and faculty can visit the WVU Foundation site below and complete your information online. In the "comments" box, you can write the content of the note you wish to give the student.
QUESTIONS?
Contact the WVU School of Medicine Alumni Office at (304) 293-5110.
