Med School Nabs Guest Speaker

Former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher was overwhelmingly voted by fourth-year graduate students to be this year's guest speaker.

"There was a big call from the student body saying that we wanted a public event," said Eric Ball, head of the graduation committee for the medical school. "We e-mailed everybody and asked who they wanted to speak at graduation -- David Satcher was by far the most popular."

A former Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar and Macy Fellow, Satcher is the recipient of 18 honorary degrees and numerous distinguished honors. In 1998 he became the surgeon general under President Clinton, a post he held until February.

Committee members said his work as surgeon general during times of great national concern over bioterrorism, as well as his work to diminish disparities in available health care, made Satcher a popular choice among students.

"He's an outstanding leader in medicine and health care," said Patrick Link, a member of the graduation committee. "Being an African-American, he's an outstanding minority role model."

In previous years, guest speakers have been members of the school's faculty. But due to renovations, this year's ceremony was moved from Memorial Hall to the Smith Center, making it possible for the graduation committee to book a speaker from outside of the school.

"Because of the larger venue, we were able to make the event public and bring in an outside speaker," Ball said.

But committee members encountered a problem with their new plan -- because the school never had a speaker from outside its doors, there was also no speaker allowance set aside for the ceremonies.

The lack of funding presented the committee with an obstacle to overcome in time for graduation, especially with Satcher's regular speaking price set at $20,000, committee members said.

But Satcher said he was willing to be flexible with his asking price, and when members of the graduation committee informed him that they had no money set aside for the speaker, he brought his price down to $5,000, Ball said.

To raise the money, the committee went to several student organizations asking for financial assistance.

Student Congress awarded the committee $2,000, the Graduate and Professional Student Federation donated $1,000, and the committee received $500 from the Office of Student Affairs. The Medical Foundation of North Carolina then agreed to give the committee the remaining $500 if the students participated in a phone-a-thon to raise money for the School of Medicine, Link said.

Faculty members, as well as the students, are looking forward to Satcher participating in graduation this year, said Marshall Runge, professor and chairman of the Department of General Medicine.

"It is hard to imagine a person who has accomplished more or is a better speaker than Dr. Satcher," Runge said. "In his public and private life, he has been a role model we can all aspire to."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.