The Class of 2021 Withstood the Pandemic Challenge and Emerged Successful

During her commencement speech, Gina Lerner AuD ‘21, thanked Sherman Lord, AuD '09, MS, an adjunct professor at Salus University’s Osborne College of Audiology (OCA).

Lerner has known Lord since she was a young child. Although Lord is her neighbor, the families were so close that she grew up calling him “uncle.” Dr. Lord, who served as her mentor ever since, was the one who introduced Dr. Lerner to the profession of audiology, and she eventually would have him as professor while studying at  OCA.

That longtime relationship yielded a special payoff for Dr. Lerner as she was asked to represent the Class of 2021 by giving the graduate address during the University’s virtual 122nd commencement ceremony.

“An important lesson that I have learned from this year is that there is only one thing in this world that we know for certain, and that is change is inevitable,” Dr. Lerner told her classmates, who together battled through the challenging stages of a pandemic to attain their degrees. “I believe this is especially true in the field of health sciences, not only during a global pandemic, but always. Healthcare, research, public health and education are and will always be continuously evolving.”

This year’s commencement ceremony was a combination of in-person and virtual. On Tuesday and Wednesday, May 25 and May 26, students in each of the University’s three colleges had the opportunity to be handed their diplomas in person during a drive-thru ceremony on the Elkins Park campus. On Thursday, May 27, the virtual ceremony premiered on the University’s website.

Some students decided to take advantage of both celebrations. Abagail Possinger, AuD ‘21, attended the drive-by celebration May 25 with her grandmother, JoAnn Payne.

“It was very organized. There was a gowning station and a degowning station. Everything was super-straightforward, easy and safe,” said Dr. Possinger. “For anybody who wanted to keep a distance, they were able to do that, which was awesome.”

She and the rest of her family, including her parents, grandmother, aunts, her best friend since high school and her sister and brother-in-law, all gathered May 27 for a virtual ceremony watch party in Dr. Possinger’s hometown of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

They ordered catering, patched the online ceremony to the family room television, and cheered when Dr. Possinger’s photo came on the screen.

“A lot of the pressure has been lifted now,” she said. “It’s wonderful and overwhelming, but I’m so proud that I’ve accomplished this amazing feat.”

Dr. Possinger will soon start her professional career as an audiologist at a non-profit private practice in Maine.

The virtual ceremony’s keynote speaker, Congresswoman Madeleine Dean, U.S. Representative for Pennsylvania’s 4th congressional district, which includes Salus University, claimed the day for the graduates.

“This is all about you. You are the stars of the day,” she said. “You have all the tools, with an extra bit of tenacity that no other class has had, having lived through a pandemic that has shaken our world.”

Dean didn’t focus on the losses that occurred during the pandemic, but rather on what the students gained during during the past year. 

“You have earned, what I believe, is a Master’s in humility and humanity — humility in the face of a virus and a refocus on what matters, our common humanity,” she said. “Whether you studied optometry, audiology, health sciences, you have studied and practiced in the areas of vision, hearing, speech, and the delivery of health services and rehabilitation, at an extraordinary time in our country's history. As for vision and for seeing, sure you have learned the latest tools of the trade and sciences around sight, but equally as powerful, you have learned that we must take the time to look through another person's lenses, to search for the truth, to search for healing and what matters.”

The commencement also featured the conferring of an honorary degree to Robert E. Horne, who served as dean of Student Affairs at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) and then Salus until his retirement in 2012. 

Dean Horne, introduced by Ruth Shoge, OD ‘06, Resident ‘07, MPH, was instrumental in launching the Summer Enrichment Program in 1977, was presented with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from the University.

“I can't leave you without a word of thanks to the one group that made all of this possible: All of the students who trusted me and gave me everything they had to be successful. Trust that I will always remember each and every one of you,” said dean Horne. “I can't begin to tell you how thankful and humble I am to receive this honor.”

Salus president Michael H. Mittelman, OD ‘80, MPH, MBA, FAAO, FACHE, thanked the graduates for their hard work and dedication and their families for the support they provided the students.

“I really thought we’d be doing this at the Kimmel Center when we started the planning of this celebration many months ago but circumstances have again dealt us another hand,” he said. “While we all realize this isn’t what anyone ever expected, this virtual ceremony certainly doesn’t minimize any of your hard work and accomplishments and we’re going to do our best to celebrate your successes and accomplishments in the best way possible.”

Dr. Mittelman said the graduates lived through times that forced everyone to be responsive to change — change brought on by the most unprecedented circumstances in the nation’s recent history: the COVID-19 pandemic, political discourse and social injustice.

“Resilience, responsiveness, innovation, evolution, compassion and maintaining the ability to listen, learn and be flexible is how our institution continues to respond and how you continue to flourish as healthcare professionals,” he said.