Touro Closes 2022-2023 Academic Year with Raft of Accomplishments
All 3 Colleges, University as a Whole Report Progress on Initiatives Both New and Ongoing
The 2022-2023 academic year comes to a close this month with a series of commencements and reflection on all that has been accomplished.
Touro University California opened the Social Justice Center in November in the campus library to further Touro’s equity mission.
The center houses reference materials, doubles as a meeting room and provides a safe space for students to study or relax. The center is the University’s first space on campus dedicated to social justice and builds on Touro’s core value of social justice.
The center’s opening was three years in the making and based on a student-faculty collaboration.
The Social Justice Resource Center is stocked with books, films and other resources that are intended to support representation and increase access to social justice awareness across the campus.
Three topical programs have been presented at the center since it opened, each designed to foster a sense of inclusion on campus while also involving the greater community.
The first was a Black History Month event in February that focused on the power of storytelling. The second was a panel discussion in March among women of color who are either elected officials or community leaders. The discussion coincided with Women’s History Month. The third was an early Pride Month event the first week in May that provided information and resources to people in advance of Pride Month in June.
Each of Touro University California’s colleges also advanced its programs to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
The College of Osteopathic Medicine achieved the largest California residency match in the program’s 25-year history, with a record 80% of Class of 2023 graduates earning matches across the West Coast and Hawaii – a record 73% in California. A total of 67% of graduates earned matches in Primary Care, in keeping with the University’s mission.
The matches include:
- One of the 10 Osteopathic Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine positions nationwide.
- Two of the 20 Ear, Nose and Throat positions nationwide.
- A new historically high percentage of University Medical Center matches – 22% of the class, across 12 disciplines
- Matches spanned 19 disciplines.
- A total of 11 matches were at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Stockton in Internal Medicine, Family Medicine, Emergency Medicine, Psychology and Transitional Medicine.
The College of Osteopathic Medicine also received approval – and the accompanying accreditation – to expand each class from 135 students to 185. The first expanded class is expected in Fall 2024. The College of Osteopathic Medicine also was granted 10 years of continuing accreditation with a status of “Accreditation with Exceptional Outcome.”
The College of Pharmacy this fall will launch its three-year PharmD degree program to offer the type of program the vast majority of pharmacy students are seeking. Other achievements across the College include:
- Received funding from Solano County to continue the Touro CARES Mobile Vaccination Program for 18 months. The program, launched in response to the pandemic, now offers COVID-19 vaccinations along with influenza vaccines; other vaccines required for school-age children; and adds additional health care activities at some events to include blood glucose screening, blood pressure screening and similar preventive screenings. The program offers numerous opportunities for Touro University California students across all programs to take part.
The College of Education and Health Science’s Public Health Division achieved a seven-year reaccreditation. Other achievements across the College include:
- Receipt of $9 million in grant funding, the most in the College’s history. The grants are across all four programs and include the Graduate School of Education’s U.S. Prep Grant; the School of Nursing’s Community Healthcare Workers Grant; the Physician Assistant program’s HRSA Grant; and Public Health’s Black Leadership Grant with SolanoConnex, Youth in Action; and the Dean’s Office’s Sierra Health Foundation Elevate Youth PATHS Mentoring Program grant.
- The Education program launched the TREE program, which is short for Touro Rising Educator's Experience; now offers an EdD in Leading innovative and Diverse Organizations; and received a 3+1 Bachelor's to Teaching Credential Planning Grant in collaboration with Touro University Worldwide.
- The Nursing program has proposed a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Program; and initiated a Community College Direct Entry Bridge Program.
- The Physician Assistant-Los Angeles program remains under development for a possible Fall 2024 start.
- The Public Health program is partnering with the College of Medicine to look at plans for expansion of the dual Doctor of Osteopathy/Master of Public Health program to match the expansion of the COM program that’s scheduled in Fall 2024.
- Dr. Linda Haymes from the Graduate School of Education has co-published a new book: “Case Studies in Applied Behavior Analysis for Students and Adults with Disabilities.”
- Dr. Ijeoma Ononuju is in the running for another Deep Equity series this spring in conjunction with the Touro University of New York Graduate School of Education.
- Shivani Majmudar from the Physician Assistant/Master of Public Health program will serve as Student Government Association President this year. It’s the first time a CEHS student has served in this leadership role in quite some time.