CAMPUS NEWS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
JANUARY 6, 2005
Graduates, Pioneers Celebrate Sherman's 100th
Commencement
While 46 new chiropractors reminisced about
their last three and a half years at Sherman,
graduates of the college's first class traveled
back in time 28 years to a humble but memorable
ceremony held at a local movie theater in 1976
in Spartanburg, SC. Sherman College's December
2004 commencement ceremony proved to be a
memorable one for both the 100th graduating
class and the "Pioneer" graduates in attendance.
As the first chiropractors to graduate from
Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic,
members of the Class of 1976 are often
affectionately called "Pioneers." Thirty-eight
such Pioneers walked across the stage at the
Westgate Theater in Spartanburg (the college did
not yet have a permanent facility) to receive
the doctor of chiropractic degree during the
school's first commencement ceremony. It was
only fitting that the date of this event was
September 18, the anniversary of chiropractic's
founding by D.D. Palmer.
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Pioneer graduates in attendance at
the college's 100th commencement
ceremony included Drs. Fran
Lounsbury, Virginia Brannon (both
seated), Robert Epstein, Perry Rush,
Leroy Moore and David Ivey. |
Twenty-eight years and three months later, 46
new doctors of chiropractic from around the
world received their degrees on the college's
permanent campus in the Springfield section of
Spartanburg. The December graduates enjoyed a
light breakfast with family and friends while
several of the Pioneer graduates gathered for a
reception in their honor. December graduates and
Pioneers each received a marble paperweight with
an engraved plaque commemorating the day.
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Forty-six
students from around the world
received the doctor of chiropractic
degree at the college's 100th
commencement ceremony on December
18, 2004. |
Alex Carmelo Roa of Puerto Rico, recipient of
the Milton W. Garfunkel Award, presented a
rousing farewell address to his classmates
during the ceremony. The Garfunkel Award is the
highest award given at graduation. Roa received
a standing ovation following his address, during
which he described his emotional journey from
Puerto Rico to the U.S. for chiropractic
college. Roa came to Sherman with no money, no
car, no friends and little command of the
English language. He leaves the college as a
doctor of chiropractic, with honors, and with
his new wife. Roa also received the B.J. Palmer
Philosophy Distinction Award.
George A. Berry, Jr., of Florida received the
Service Distinction Award. This award is not
presented at every graduation; rather it is
given only to that occasional, special student
who stands out for his or her significant and
distinguished service contributions to the
college throughout the course of study.
Roxzanne B. Breland, B.S., M.Ed., D.C., of
Greenville, SC, gave the commencement address.
Breland is a 1986 magna cum laude graduate of
Sherman College and a former Sherman instructor.
She is a member of the South Carolina
Chiropractic Association (SCCA), the Women's
Network, the American Chiropractic Association (ACA)
and Altrusa International Inc., and she has
presented numerous workshops in risk management
and x-ray certification. Breland is current
president of the South Carolina Quality
Radiation Standards Association Board and is a
member of the South Carolina Vocational
Rehabilitation Board. She is a member of the
Sherman College Alumni Association, the Board of
Regents and the Sherman College Board of
Visitors.
Sherman's Dean of Clinical Sciences Leslie M.
Wise, B.A., D.C., gave the charge to the
graduates. Wise immediately joined the faculty
of Sherman College following his graduation from
Palmer College of Chiropractic in 1974. Wise was
awarded the college's first Faculty Member of
the Year Award in 1982. He serves on the
National Board Test Committee for Part II and
Part IV and was recently named to the National
Board Test Committee for Ethics and Boundary
Issues. He is a member of the Association of
Chiropractic Colleges Technique Consortium. Wise
maintains a private practice in Spartanburg with
his son, Nicholas, a 2000 Sherman graduate, and
recently celebrated 30 years in practice.
Wise and his wife, Joy Gayler, who is also an
instructor at Sherman College, are creators of
the Institute for Chiropractic Ethics web site (www.chiroethics.org),
an online source of ongoing information
concerning ethical issues in chiropractic. Dr.
Wise attended the first Sherman College
graduation in 1976 and has been present at
nearly all of the 100 graduations since that
time.
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