Alumni and Guests “Look Inside” at Palmer’s Davenport Campus Homecoming 2007
Nearly 1,700 Palmer College of Chiropractic alumni and guests came to Palmer’s Davenport Campus for Homecoming 2007 Aug. 9-11. This year’s theme, “Look Inside,” referred to some exciting additions to Palmer’s Davenport Campus, as well as the healing, compassion and knowledge that chiropractors can find within themselves and at Palmer. Attendees could earn up to 16 continuing education credits and sample the wares of the 77 vendors at the event’s EXPO, plus attend social events on the campus and in the community. “Our goal is to ensure that Palmer’s Homecoming is an event with the best speakers and continuing education program in the profession, one of the largest vendor expos and the most entertaining social events,” said College Events Manager Stacey Wiley. “We are proud to welcome our alumni back to Davenport, chiropractic’s birthplace.” One of the main events at this year’s Palmer Homecoming on the Davenport Campus was the ribbon cutting and building dedication ceremony on Friday, Aug. 10, for the newly named Pisciottano (pronounced Pis-uh-tan-oh) Hall, which houses the Palmer College of Chiropractic Academic Health Center (AHC). The building, which opened in July, is a $12.5 million, three-story, 50,000-square-foot facility that includes: -- Community outpatient clinic facilities -- A Clinical Learning Resource Center with resources for students, faculty, alumni and researchers -- Digital radiology (X-ray) services -- Expanded chiropractic rehabilitation and sports injury services -- Welcome Center The building’s namesakes, Maurice Pisciottano, D.C., and Laurel Gretz-Pisciottano, D.C., both 1989 Palmer alumni, gave a $3 million challenge pledge to Palmer’s $35 million capital campaign. This donation by the Pisciottanos was the largest single alumni contribution to the campaign, which surpassed its goals and raised more than $35.5 million for the AHC’s construction as well as to increase the College’s endowment by $10 million and fund other capital projects. Through the capital campaign, the building received federal support of $3.4 million, as well as a $750,000 challenge grant from The Kresge Foundation, the first ever awarded to a chiropractic college, and $1,750,000 in pledges from the Bechtel Trusts. Hundreds of people in the hot August sun were part of Palmer and chiropractic history as speeches were made, a ribbon was cut and a time capsule was placed in the new building. Palmer’s Vice Chancellor for Academics Dennis Marchiori, D.C., Ph.D., served as emcee for the event. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), who was influential in garnering federal support for the AHC, was represented by Alison Hart from his Davenport office. Other participants included Anita Bigo, D.C., a 1956 Palmer alumna who gave the invocation, and the following speakers: Palmer’s Davenport Campus President Donald Kern, D.C.; Ron Boesch, D.C., AHC faculty clinician; Valarie Morrow, AHC staff member; Kurt Wood, D.C., executive dean for clinic affairs; James Leonette, Davenport Campus Student Council president; Chancellor Larry Patten; Palmer Board of Trustees Chairman Vickie Palmer; and Maurice Piscottano, D.C. “I was excited to be a part of this project from the beginning because it represents the future of chiropractic,” said Dr. Pisciottano. “The number of people who will be impacted by the students who learn here will number in the hundreds of millions and eventually the billions. We can and we will be the number one healthcare choice on planet Earth. All of you here today will have had a part in what I believe is the tipping point for Palmer College and the chiropractic profession.” Another significant event during Palmer Homecoming 2007 was the announcement of the creation of a new alumni association for Palmer. “By working together, we can accomplish great things for Palmer College, its alumni and future alumni,” said Executive Director for Alumni Mickey Burt, D.C., in a presentation on Aug. 9, just prior to the alumni reception. Graduates of all three Palmer campuses will automatically be part of the new association. Dr. Burt told attendees that, in the coming months, the Alumni Office will be collecting profiles from graduates who would like to participate in leadership roles in the Palmer College of Chiropractic Alumni Association. The leadership of the new association will be made up of a diverse group of alumni from all three campuses who will have the opportunity to participate in many different ways.
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