Celebrating Future Physicians with a Parade

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade and Rose Parade are classic American traditions with floats and bands. With increasing health risks of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) School of Medicine and Alumni Relations hosted a welcome parade Friday (July 31) for first-year medical students – replacing the traditional parade fanfare with stethoscopes, white coats and scrubs.

More than 160 medical students took part in the School of Medicine Welcome Parade. Steven L. Berk, M.D., TTUHSC executive vice president and dean of the School of Medicine, said while the pandemic changed the yearly White Coat Ceremony and events provided for first-year medical students, the school wanted to welcome the students in some way.