Notable Commencement Speakers Set to Address the Class of 2023
NYMC Readies to Set the Stage for the 164th Commencement Ceremonies
The 164th Commencement is just one month away and the New York Medical College community is ready to celebrate the Class of 2023. This year, the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBMS) welcomes Jeffrey M. Friedman, M.D., Ph.D., (right), Marilyn M. Simpson Professor at The Rockefeller University, investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and director of the Starr Center for Human Genetics, who will speak on Monday May 22 at 2:00 p.m.; Machelle H. Allen, M.D., (left), senior vice president and deputy chief medical officer of NYC Health + Hospitals Corporation, who will speak to the School of Medicine (SOM) on Tuesday, May 23 at 1:30 p.m.; and Ann Kurth, Ph.D., RN, CNM, M.P.H., FAAN, FACNM, (center), president of the New York Academy of Medicine, who will speak to the School of Health Sciences and Practice (SHSP) on Wednesday, May 24 at 12:00 p.m. All are respected leaders in their fields with decades of experience contributing to research, medicine and public health. The ceremonies will take place on the Valhalla campus and will be livestreamed for remote viewers.
Jeffrey Friedman, M.D., Ph.D., professor at The Rockefeller University, investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and director of the Starr Center for Human Genetics, will address the GSBMS Class of 2023. With more than 45 years dedicated to medicine and research, Dr. Friedman’s name was put on the map in 1994 for his research in obesity. He is decorated with dozens of honors across the country and around the world for his findings. Dr. Friedman’s work was referred to in Time magazine's Best of Science Section in 1995 and 1996. He was recently awarded the Manpei Suzuki International Prize for Diabetes Research and the Wolf Prize in Medicine and Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences.
Orating to the SOM Class of 2023 will be Machelle H. Allen, M.D., senior vice president and deputy chief medical officer of NYC Health + Hospitals Corporation. Dr. Allen develops the clinical service line structure that resulted in the implementation of systemwide clinical initiatives, including the underpinnings of the critical care COVID-19 pandemic response. Named City & State New York’s “2023 Power of Diversity: Black 100” list, she is well-known for her commitment to serving low-income patients and setting up special prenatal programs for women with substance use disorders and women at risk for HIV infection.
Ann Kurth, Ph.D., RN, CNM, M.P.H., FAAN, FACNM, president and fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM), and fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and the American College of Nurse-Midwives, will address the SHSP Class of 2023. A leader in health – with a passion for the planet, Dr. Kurth is the first epidemiologist to head NYAM in its 175-year history. As president, she supports NYAM’s mission to eliminate the barriers that prevent every individual from living a healthy life. Dr. Kurth has served as the chair of the Consortium of Universities for Global Health, the 175+-university member association supporting academic institutions to improve the wellbeing of people and the planet.
For more information, view the commencement website.