United and Ignited Fundraising Campaign | Digest Magazine
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United and Ignited 
Fundraising Campaign


March 6, 2024

125 years, one student at a time

Beginning with its first osteopathic medical student in 1899, to the many graduates who will cross the stage this year, PCOM has been steadfastly and passionately focused on students. Faculty, staff, administration, alumni and donors provide continuous and unwavering support for students through teaching, mentoring and philanthropy. Multiple generations of multiple families have walked these halls, sending student after student to be educated in various disciplines supported by osteopathic principles.

Guided by its strategic plan, PCOM 2025: A Path to Greater Excellence, the institution has a vision to transform health professions education. The first and most important step to achieving that vision is a goal to strengthen our commitment to student success. To realize this goal, we have launched a comprehensive fundraising campaign: United & Ignited. Building upon our history, we are united in advancing initiatives that will ignite the purpose, practice and passion of PCOM students.

A common calling. A common goal.

United & Ignited is a campaign to unite the entire PCOM community and ignite goals to accelerate, expand and enhance every student’s educational experience. With a goal to raise $65 million by 2026, PCOM is thrilled to embark on this endeavor—but we cannot do it alone.

This campaign isn’t about buildings; it’s about building a better PCOM.

Jay S. Feldstein, DO ’81, president and chief executive officer, PCOM

United and Ignited Campaign Goal

Jay S. Feldstein, DO ’81, president and chief executive officer, PCOM portrait
From student to supporter

In his second year of medical school at PCOM in 1999, Jeffrey Kingsley, DO ’01, MBA, CPI, FACRP, enjoyed the celebrations for the institution’s 100th anniversary. Between cramming for the boards and getting ready to go on rotations, he fondly recalls the banners along City Avenue and around the entire campus marked the amazing milestone.

United & Ignited: Three Pillars of Success
  • Accelerate Excellence & Ignite Purpose: To drive students’ academic excellence, connecting in-class learning with self-guided studying to prepare them for scholastic success.
  • Expand opportunities & ignite practice: To unlock experiential learning opportunities for students, bridging the gap between theory and practice to prepare them for professional success.
  • Enhance experiences & ignite passion: To elevate students’ experiences, bringing a holistic approach to their lives to prepare them for personal success.

Dr. Kingsley graduated from PCOM in 2001, and in 2005, he founded IACT Health, a clinical trial management company that provides infrastructure for medical research so that more physicians and patients can become involved in the research process. He served as CEO from 2005 until 2023, transitioning to serve as chief development officer and a board member of Centricity Research.

His storied career and accomplishments have taken him from Philadelphia to Columbus, Georgia, and Dr. Kingsley remains excited to help PCOM celebrate two incredible milestones in 2024: the launch of a comprehensive campaign and the institution’s 125th anniversary. Dr. Kingsley serves as a volunteer on the Georgia Committee for the campaign. From student to campaign volunteer, Dr. Kingsley embodies the enthusiasm and dedication of so many members of the PCOM community to the success of United & Ignited.

This is an incredible moment in PCOM’s history.

This is your moment. Your moment to help PCOM successfully position students as leaders in a competitive healthcare market. Your moment to unite with other key stakeholders in the PCOM community and make an unprecedented impact on the purpose, practice and passion of PCOM students.

Join us in this historic moment

President’s Fireside Chat Launches United & Ignited Campaign

On January 24, Jay S. Feldstein, DO ’81, president and chief executive officer, and Carrie Collins, JD, PhD, chief advancement and strategic planning officer, hosted a virtual fireside chat for the PCOM community. 

The event marked two momentous occasions for PCOM as it celebrated the accomplishments of the institution’s 125-year history and ignited exciting plans for the future with the announcement of United & Ignited, a campaign to accelerate, expand and enhance every student’s educational experience.

John B. Bulger, DO ’95, MBA, vice chairman of the PCOM Board of Trustees, and Patience A. Mason, MEd, chief student affairs officer, PCOM, joined the broadcast to discuss their support of United & Ignited to help ignite the purpose, practice and passion of PCOM students.

The evening culminated with a toast to PCOM’s 125-year legacy and its bright future.

PCOM Celebrates Foundational Gift to United & Ignited with Dedications of Hassman Academic Center and Hassman Family Medicine

Hassman family at Howard A. Hassman, DO '83, naming ceremony

Following the launch of United & Ignited, PCOM celebrated an eight-figure commitment—the largest philanthropic commitment in its history—by Howard A. Hassman, DO ’83. This commitment not only advances PCOM and its strategic priorities but also serves as the foundation of United & Ignited, for which Dr. Hassman serves on the advisory committee.

In recognition of Dr. Hassman’s dedication to philanthropy at PCOM, the academic building known as Evans Hall was renamed the Howard A. Hassman, DO ’83 Academic Center. Additionally, Family Medicine at PCOM, the healthcare center on City Avenue, was named the Joseph M. Hassman, DO ’65 Family Medicine Center in honor of Dr. Hassman’s father.

In addition to Joseph Hassman, who founded a private family medicine practice in Berlin, New Jersey, more than 60 years ago, and Howard Hassman, chief scientific officer and principal investigator at the clinical research organization CenExel HRI (formerly Hassman Research Institute); Howard’s sister, Elissa F. Hassman, DO ’86, and brothers David R. Hassman, DO ’91, and Michael A. Hassman, DO ’94, are all PCOM alumni.

Dedication ceremonies for the Hassman Academic Center and Hassman Family Medicine Center took place on
January 25.

Honoring the Legacy of H. Walter Evans, DO 1917

H. Walter Evans, DO 1917 Administrative Suite

To continue the legacy of H. Walter Evans, DO 1917, the second floor of Hassman Academic Center, where the Provost’s Office is located, has been named the H. Walter Evans, DO 1917 Administrative Suite.

After serving in World War I, Dr. Evans joined Philadelphia College of Osteopathy (PCO) as an associate professor in obstetrics and bacteriology. He organized and chaired the Department of Preventive Medicine in 1925, and in 1932 was made professor of obstetrics.

Dr. Evans was known not only as a teacher, but as a visionary leader. He contributed to the development of the 48th Street campus and helped guide PCO through the Depression and the post-war years. He was instrumental in the planning and construction of the City Avenue campus. In 1963, he was honored with the O.J. Snyder Memorial Medal, and for many years after that, served as an officer of the Alumni Association and as the director of the hospitals of PCOM.

A Night to Ignite

The future of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

April 27, 2024
Four Seasons Philadelphia

A Night to Ignite Gala logo

PCOM is thrilled to announce a gala in support of United & Ignited. A Night to Ignite will raise funds to accelerate academic excellence, expand clinical opportunities, and enhance campus experiences—all to ignite the purpose, practice, and passion of current and future students.

Individual tickets will go on sale in March. Sponsorship opportunities are available.

Learn More

About Digest Magazine

Digest, the magazine for alumni and friends of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, is published by the Office of Marketing and Communications. The magazine reports on osteopathic and other professional trends of interest to alumni of the College’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) and graduate programs at PCOM, PCOM Georgia and PCOM South Georgia.

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