For the University of Vermont College of Medicine, 2015 was filled with exceptional displays of courage, innovation, advocacy, altruism, generosity, leadership and growth. Below are 15 moments in the year 2015 – in no particular order – that will remain in our memories for years to come. View a broader slideshow here.

The Ebola Fighters Return
UVM trauma surgeon Margaret Tandoh, M.D., and infectious disease specialist and Global Health Program Director Majid Sadigh, M.D., returned to the College of Medicine in January after spending seven weeks helping fight Ebola in Liberia from November to December 2014. They shared stories of their experiences in this article.

Peter Wingfield’s Powerful Speech at Commencement
Cardiff, Wales native and former “Highlander” television series star Peter Wingfield, M.D.’15, wowed Commencement attendees with his powerful student speaker address – told from the perspective of his thirty-four-year journey to becoming a doctor – on May 17, 2015. View the video.

$9 Million Larner Gift Helps Launch UVM “Move Mountains” Campaign
During UVM’s “Move Mountains” campaign launch on October 2, medical alumnus and UVM Foundation Leadership Council member James Betts, M.D.’73, and Dean Frederick Morin, M.D., revealed news of a $9 million gift from Robert Larner, M.D.’42 and Helen Larner, which was directed to the Larner Endowed Medical Education Fund to support student education-related initiatives. Read more about the gift here.

Alumnus Vito Imbasciani, M.D.’85 Appointed California VA Secretary
UVM College of Medicine alumnus and donor Vito Imbasciani, M.D.’85, Ph.D., was sworn in as Secretary of the California Department of Veteran Affairs by California Governor Jerry Brown on September 25, 2015. The president-elect of the Los Angeles County Medical Association, Imbasciani worked at the Southern California Permanente Medical Group as director of governmental relations since 2005, and as a urologic surgeon since 1997. Read the article.

UVM Goes Tobacco-Free with Carney’s Leadership
On August 1, 2015, the University of Vermont campus joined about 1,500 other universities in becoming tobacco-free, thanks to the leadership of Jan Carney, M.D., M.P.H., associate dean for public health and chair of the university’s Benefits Advisory Council. Read more.

Research on Potential Eye Color-Alcohol Dependence Link Trends on Facebook
A study by Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics Dawei Li, Ph.D., and doctoral student Arvis Sulovari published in the July issue of the American Journal of Medical Genetics: Neuropsychiatric Genetics (Part B), was the first to make a direct connection between a person’s eye color and alcohol dependence. In addition to attracting wide national media coverage, the news became a “trending topic” on Facebook on July 2, 2015 – a status that indicates a spike in popularity across the social media platform. Read about the study here.

Class of 2019 Receives White Coats
This annual ceremony marks the first major milestone in each medical student’s educational career. Read about and view the video of the Class of 2019’s participation in this rite of passage on October 23, 2015.

College Appoints Inaugural Teaching Academy Director
The Teaching Academy at the UVM College of Medicine was launched in December 2014, with a mission to foster a scholarly approach to medical education, nurture faculty development, and guide curricular innovation. Kathryn Huggett, Ph.D., began her new role as the inaugural director of the Teaching Academy on September 1, 2015. Learn more about Huggett here.

UVM Receives $18.5 Million to Study Integration of Behavioral Health and Primary Care
On August 21, 2015, UVM researchers Benjamin Littenberg, M.D., Tufo professor of medicine, Rodger Kessler, Ph.D., associate professor of family medicine, and Constance Van Eeghen, Dr.P.H., assistant professor of medicine, received approval for an unprecedented $18.5 million in funding from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to examine whether patients with both medical and behavioral problems do better when their primary care physicians work in combination with behavioral health professionals. Read more.

Global Health Program Featured in Regional Connecticut Newspaper Series
The Hearst Connecticut Media Group featured a five-part multimedia series that profiled third-year Norwalk Hospital resident Sohi Ashraf, M.D., during his six-week journey in Uganda with the Western Connecticut Health Network/UVM College of Medicine (WCHN/UVM) Global Health Program. Global Health Program Director Majid Sadigh, M.D., and Class of 2018 students Mary Kate LoPiccolo and Alexandra Miller, were also featured. Find links to the series.

Admissions Rolls Out New Interview Format – the MMI
The College of Medicine's Admissions office launched the used of Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI), a new interview format that includes a series of six-minute interviews with nine different people drawn from the ranks of faculty, residents and current students. Learn about the MMI.

Tracy Named American Heart Association Distinguished Scientist Award
UVM Professor of Pathology and Biochemistry Russell Tracy, Ph.D., a Fellow of the American Heart Association, joined “a prominent group of scientists and clinicians whose work has importantly advanced our understanding of cardiovascular diseases and stroke” upon receiving the AHA’s Distinguished Scientist Award on November 8, 2015. Find out more here.

UVM Department of Pharmacology Offers First-Ever Medical Cannabis Course
UVM made a mark in the national media scene with news of “Medical Cannabis, Pharm-372,” a Spring 2016 “Special Topics” course in pharmacology for upper-level elective credit. Professors of Pharmacology Karen Lounsbury, Ph.D. and Wolfgang Dostmann, Ph.D., as well as plant biologist Monique McHenry, Ph.D., are co-directors of what is believed to be the first academic medical cannabis course in the U.S. Read about the course here.

“The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down Author Fadiman Visit College of Medicine
A September visit by author Anne Fadiman included special time with UVM medical students, including members of the Class of 2019 who had her book “The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down” as a summer reading assignment. Check out an interview with Fadiman.

Match Day: College of Medicine Class of 2015 Members Learn Residency Locations
On March 20, members of the UVM College of Medicine’s Class of 2015 participated in one of the most stress-inducing milestones in a medical students’ life – Match Day. Highlights included a match for alumna Liz Abernathey, M.D. – the College’s first Deaf student – to a pediatrics residency at Seattle Children’s Hospital, and a couples’ match to Johns Hopkins School of Medicine for alumni Amanda Peel, M.D., and Calvin Kagan, M.D., who were married June 6, 2015. Read more.