Welcome to the start of the 2018-2019 academic year. For our new students, I want to share that I was in your position last year at this time and was nervous about joining the IHP. We all want you to know how glad we are you decided to join this wonderful academic institution that will prepare you for a lifetime of opportunity. We will do everything we can to help you succeed.
For our returning students, I hope you had a little time to rest and renew this summer and you are excited to continue your learning. For our faculty and staff, I hope the past few months were enjoyable and restful, with intermittent bouts of productivity, recognizing that for some, summer schedules seem to slow down a bit.
We are starting the new academic year on a high note. The following are just some examples of the achievements of the IHP community over the past 12 months.
We are excited about the aspirational goals in the new 2018-2022 Strategic Plan. Many members of the IHP community spent the summer working on the implementation plan associated with those goals, and we will begin over the course of this year launching new initiatives which will begin to shape our future.
Last May, we graduated 583 students, the largest class of health professionals in our history. We celebrated the new graduates, who were accompanied by their families and friends at the Boston Convention and Exposition Center, as future leaders in their respective field.
Our research programs have continued to flourish and make an impact on best practices in patient care. They are focusing on areas that can make a real difference in people’s lives and include such areas as improving student outcomes, brain recovery after accident or injury, and improving speech and feeding in patients with neurological impairments.
Our researchers have been incredibly productive and successful, increasing our collective grant portfolio to $3,327,942 in FY18 – a 47 percent increase over FY17. And it’s expected to get even better in FY19, with grants projected to rise to $4,342,038. In addition to allowing faculty to work on innovative ways to improve patient care, grants also provide students exceptional opportunities to learn about research and contribute to the development of knowledge.
We also opened and named the Dr. Charles and Ann Sanders IMPACT Practice Center (IPC) to house under one roof all of our patient care centers where students can incorporate their interprofessional education by caring for patients under the watchful eyes of our faculty. At July’s naming ceremony, stroke patient Richie Arsenault gave a moving story about how the care he has received at the Aphasia Center over the past several years has completely transformed his life. Second-year DPT student Emma Laird spoke about the impact the IPC had on her learning. “Nothing prepares you for the real world like the real world,” she told the audience. Her experiences in the IPC prepared her to be the confident clinician into which she is growing. Truly, we have so much of which to be proud.
As everyone settles into their new environment or prepare for a new academic year, I want to encourage the entire IHP community to commit to making our environment a respectful, welcoming, and inclusive community. Reach out to our new students and employees to see if they need any help adjusting to this transition. Be that warm, welcoming presence for people who are new to your program or office. Recognize that change requires us to listen thoughtfully to other perspectives and respect the valves and views of others.
Ours is a community where we recognize we have room to grow. We take very seriously our new Strategic Priorities that state, in part, “build and nurture a diverse and inclusive Institute community that welcomes and values the contributions of all and provides the experience and tools for students to ably serve diverse populations.” We also recognize that as a community, we must commit to being open to embracing ideas and concepts around social justice and equity that will help us improve.
To that end, the members of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Council stand ready to provide leadership in this area. But it will take every member of the community, working together, to create a more just and equitable environment. I invite everyone join the DEI members in that effort.
So, welcome to the 2018-2019 academic year. I look forward to having many opportunities to interact with faculty, staff, students, and alumni over the coming months. And, if you see me around campus or in Charlestown, please say hello. Enjoy!