Record-breaking number of alumni connect at sold-out MUSC Alumni Weekend

Two-hundred years. Six colleges. Seven-hundred and fifty attendees. Three days.

And more memories, pride, laughter and ideas exchanged than you could count.

A record-breaking number of alumni returned to campus Feb. 29 through March 2 for the inaugural MUSC Alumni Weekend. It was the first time in MUSC’s 200-year history that alumni from all colleges and all graduating years were invited to celebrate together as one. Past and present residents, current and retired faculty members and students were also invited to attend.

Their favorite part of Alumni Weekend? 

“All the people,” said Mirarvesh Mendhi, College of Health Professions, Class of 1993. 

“Seeing everyone,” said Rosalia Kickish, DMD, College of Dental Medicine, Class of 2014. “We had a really close-knit class.” 

“Connecting with people that I went to school with … and faculty members who were mentors,” said Chris Groke, College of Pharmacy, Class of 1993. “I got to meet a lot of new people, too.” 

To put the weekend in perspective, graduates from as early as 1954 and recently as 2023 attended. They came from 24 states and territories – as far away as Bath, England, to the east and California to the west.

For its inaugural Alumni Weekend, the MUSC Alumni Association planned three days of events: a symposium and party for all alumni and more intimate get-togethers, like the deans’ breakfasts and college barbecues, which gave alumni a chance to catch up with classmates.

Lanyards with color-coded ribbons made it easy for alumni to find friends and classmates, especially at Universitywide events. Each color corresponded to an MUSC college – kelly green for Medicine, lilac for Dental Medicine, yellow for Health Professions, olive green for Pharmacy, peach for Nursing and blue for Graduate Studies. The colors were chosen to match the colors of each alumni’s academic regalia.

Tours highlight transformation

Hundreds of alumni braved the potential for rain to tour the campus and see how much their alma mater had changed since they graduated.

“That was impressive,” said Gary Zahler, M.D., College of Medicine, Class of 1963, after he toured the virtual reality anatomy lab available to students in the Colbert Library. 

As alumni saw, a lot of campus is under construction. In December, the College of Health Professions broke ground on its fourth building. In January, the College of Nursing started knocking down walls in preparation for a first-floor renovation. With designs underway for a new College of Medicine building, many alumni commented that the campus was nearly unrecognizable from when they were students.

“It’s just amazing how much campus has grown and improved,” Groke said. The pharmacy alumnus was especially proud of the new pharmacy facility on the Horseshoe, which opened last year. 

Symposium educates and inspires
Alumni earned 6.5 continuing education credits at the daylong Alumni Weekend Symposium, highlighting innovation and research happening at MUSC. Speaker topics included harnessing artificial intelligence, human-centered design in health care, drug discovery, cardiovascular genetics, palliative care, health care leadership and more.

The topic for the opening session, “A Case Study in Collaborative Care for Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS),” was chosen both for its relevance to all alumni – as most health care providers will likely encounter EDS patients throughout their careers – and because two graduates of the MUSC College of Graduate Studies, Russell “Chip” Norris, Ph.D., Class of 2000, and Cortney Gensemer, Ph.D., Class of 2023, are leading breakthrough research into the genetic cause for EDS, in Norris’ MUSC lab.

A third alumnus, world-renowned neurosurgeon Sunil Patel, College of Medicine, Class of 1985, specializes in surgical treatments for EDS. Patel, who predicts EDS will be “the diabetes of this next century,” said he fell to his knees when he heard about the discovery made in the Norris Lab. 

“Right here on this campus, someone is working on the gene?” Patel exclaimed. “I can’t wait for the next five years in my career at MUSC where three alumni now are working together … to solve this problem.”

One of Patel’s patients, Sydney Severance (a self-proclaimed future alumna), joined the three alumni for the compelling relay-style session. Because of extensive surgeries on her neck and back, Severance has had to relearn to walk twice. When she stood to take the stage, a room full of alumni stood with her, applause rippling through the room. 

Severance’s vulnerable account of living with chronic pain brought several alumni close to tears. She also shared video testimonials from her care team, who recommended that alumni listen to their patients and acknowledge that patients may know more about their disease than providers do. 

After the session, Sam McCown, College of Medicine, Class of 1994, summed it up perfectly: “It’s not often these sessions are as inspirational as they are educational!”

The bash was a blast!
The weekend ended with a huge party for all alumni at The Shed Downtown at the Charleston Visitors Center in downtown Charleston. 

The 19,000 square foot space was a sea of color, with dozens of round tables draped in linens that matched MUSC’s college colors. At the end of the venue, a 360-degree camera spun around alumni, capturing them posing with friends. A dance floor was set up in the middle of the venue, right in front of the live band.

Over oysters and cocktails, alumni mixed, mingled and made new memories. After dinner, live music from The Tams – best known for the band’s hit “Be Young, Be Foolish, Be Happy” – pumped up the energy and filled the dance floor with shag dancing couples. 

When glow bracelets and necklaces were passed out, alumni really let loose, starting a conga line and even break dancing.

Then. Now. Next.
Bottom line: the bash was a blast, but the best part, most said, was connecting with each other – then, now, and next (time). 

“It’s not just the University – it’s the people,” said Buffie Lilly, College of Health Professions, Class of 2004. “I love the College of Health Professions, the friends I will forever have through it and the professors that I will forever love.”

It was a sentiment echoed throughout the weekend: MUSC offers a top-notch education with the best curriculums and facilities around. But it’s the people – the caring faculty and staff – the shared experiences with classmates and the underlying desire to change what’s possible in their communities that makes MUSC so special to its alumni. 

“In many ways, it was MUSC at its best: a weekend to catch up with friends and colleagues, revisit the past and to see the future – all front and center as we showed off our state-of-the-art facilities and innovative research and previewed what’s next,” said MUSC President David J. Cole, M.D., FACS. “I’m already looking forward to the 2025 Alumni Weekend.”