Graduates in the Master of Public Health program, from left: Ceciley Bly, who was the student speaker, Alycia Gardner, and Heather Omdal.
The Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai conferred 207 master’s degrees at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center on Friday, May 12, during a ceremony that marked significant growth in its master’s degree programs.
“This is a special ceremony,” noted Dennis S. Charney, MD, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and President for Academic Affairs, Mount Sinai Health System, who presided over the commencement before a jubilant audience of graduates, their families and friends, and Mount Sinai faculty and staff. “It is only the second time that we have had a commencement just for Master’s graduates. This signals that the master’s programs at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai are very important—and much larger.” The Graduate School granted 54 more master’s degrees this year compared to last year’s 153 master’s degrees.
In total, the Graduate School conferred 121 degrees in Public Health, one of its oldest master’s degree programs, and 22 in Health Care Delivery Leadership, one of its newest master’s programs, as well as 35 in Biomedical Sciences, 17 in Clinical Research, 9 in Genetic Counseling, and 3 in Biostatistics.
Marta Filizola, PhD, Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, and Professor of Pharmacological Sciences, addressed the graduates. “Our Class of 2017 comes from all over the world and represents different cultures and backgrounds,” she said. “But your common strength—and what unites you—is your desire to learn, to embrace new challenges, to experiment, to discover, and to collaborate with others to envision and create a better world.”
Eric J. Nestler, MD, PhD, Dean for Academic and Scientific Affairs, Nash Family Professor of Neuroscience, and Director of The Friedman Brain Institute, greeted the graduates and spoke about the need for continued diversity in the research community. “Empirical evidence has shown that a diverse group of people, with different backgrounds, perspectives, and viewpoints, can tackle highly complex problems with far greater innovation and creativity,” he said, “but despite progress, we still have a lot of work to do to create a society and culture that values what we have in common, as well as what makes us all different. Mount Sinai is at the vanguard of capturing this strength through diversity and demonstrating to others how we can do better.”
Helene D. Gayle, MD, MPH, Chief Executive Officer of the nonprofit organization McKinsey Social Initiative, who has addressed social inequity and health-related challenges on an international scale, was the commencement speaker. She told the graduates that in the midst of a deeply divided political landscape, economic inequality, and racial tensions across the United States, “You have taken an affirmative step toward action by choosing a career in health” and would be able to make a difference in the lives of people everywhere—an effort, however, that would take more than science, technology, and know-how to achieve. “If we want equality in health care, we are going to have to stand up for it, and we’re going to have to keep standing up for it,” she exhorted. “It is time that we affirm that access to health services is a right. It is as basic as education, clean water, and clean air.”
Dr. Gayle concluded: “If you can maintain the will to pursue that highest ambition, I believe we can all meet the greatest challenges of our time and leave a legacy of healthy populations and health equity for generations to come. So, let’s go do it!”