The Oakland University William Beaumont Class of 2025’s commencement was held Friday, as a celebration of the past four years coupled with excitement for the future took center stage.

Nearly 1,000 people attended the event on the campus of Oakland University, where they saw 111 (of 116) graduates receive their medical degrees.

The class was the 11^th to complete their medical education at OUWB since 2015. 

“As your dean, and now as your proud colleague, let me say congratulations to our newest doctors,” said Christopher Carpenter, M.D., Stephan Sharf Dean, OUWB.

“You have survived long days and late nights of studying and learning at the bedside,” he said. “You have made sacrifices and overcome challenges…and your dreams of being a doctor have come true.”

As part of his address to the class, Carpenter read a passage called “Enduring Values of the Medical Profession” from Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. It emphasized the importance of tact, sympathy, and understanding in serving patients who are “human, fearful, and hopeful, seeking relief, help, and reassurance.”

“You will be an immeasurably better physician if you remember that passage with each patient encounter,” he said.

“No greater opportunity, responsibility, or obligation can fall to the lot of a human being than to become a physician,” he added.

Oakland University President Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D., offered words of hope and encouragement and gave the graduates several pieces of advice, such as “be curious, respectful, and humble” and to remember that “medicine is as much an art as it is a science.”

“Of all these aphorisms, perhaps the most important one is this one — believe in yourself and the practice of medicine,” she said. “It is the most noble of professions.”

Pesovitz introduced Richard M. Frankel, Ph.D., professor, Medicine and Geriatrics, Indiana University School of Medicine. He is also a senior research scientist at Regenstrief Institute, and holds a faculty appointment in the Education Institute at Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine.

During the ceremony, Frankel received an honorary degree from OUWB and was the keynote speaker.

He urged the future physicians to support each other and look to their fellow residents for help as they enter the next phase of their careers.

“Trust your instincts and trust in the power of your peers to heal and comfort you during tough times and to celebrate with you when things go well,” said Frankel.

He also suggested that the graduates not be afraid to open up to patients.

“The next time a patient asks you a question about yourself, consider answering it and see what happens,” he said. “You may be surprised at the doors it opens and how satisfying it is on both sides of the stethoscope.”

Just before each graduate’s name was announced and they were hooded by their PRISM mentors, Berkley Browne, Ph.D., associate dean, Student Affairs, congratulated the class on their “tremendous academic achievement, and the spirit with which you have achieved it.”

“You may often feel challenged to choose between efficiency and empathy, speed, and soul,” she said. “Please never forget what you’ve already proven during your time at OUWB — you don’t have to choose. You can be bold and kind. Serious and silly. Whip smart and highly skilled…and forever learning.”

“This world needs your brilliance, your grit, and your resolve, but just as much, it desperately needs your heart,” she said.

Melissa Bayci, M.D., OUWB ‘15, served as alumni speaker and offered 10 pieces of advice based on things she has learned over the past decade – from urging the graduates to take care of themselves whenever possible to remembering who they are and where they came from.

“I challenge you to remember this…OUWB saw something in you that was more than test scores, research papers, or volunteer hours,” she said. “They saw in you the potential to be compassionate, competent physicians — ones who treat the patient as a whole, not just the sum of parts.”

‘The next chapter is starting’

Max Troyke, M.D., the student speaker at commencement, reflected on the emotions of the day before stepping up to the podium.

“I'm honored by the opportunity to do it, and I'm very excited,” he said.

Troyke described the bittersweetness of the moment.

“We've all been celebrating...having our families here...but it's also kind of sad knowing that everyone's going to be moving opposite directions across the country in a couple of weeks,” he said.

When asked about his favorite memory, he reflected on the friendships formed.

“I've met some of the most amazing friends; people that I know will be in my wedding, and vice versa. The time here is over, but the relationships will be there,” said Troyke.

Garrett Peters, M.D., shared similar feelings.

“I’m excited. I am a little nervous because I’m leaving everyone we’ve gone to school with…but I’m excited for everyone to see what the future holds,” said Peters.

He called it a full circle moment.

“Four years ago, when we went to orientation, we didn't know anyone. Then all of a sudden, these are your friends, and now you're seeing them go out and do amazing things.”

Fanny Huang, M.D., spoke about the emotional weight of wrapping up medical school.

“OUWB has created such a community that I'm so lucky to have found the people that I have,” said Huang. “I don't want this day to end, because it means the next chapter is starting, but I’m proud of everyone and their accomplishments.”

She shared the importance of the friendships that got her through it all.

“I could not have made it through without my roommates, even the first day,” said Huang. “We get so lost in textbooks and questions, and finding the right people will help you get through those hard days. “

She added, “It's not just a day for myself. I feel the accomplishments of everyone today.”

Suhani Gupta, M.D., reflected on the powerful emotions of the day.

“It’s really sentimental,” she said. “We spent four years here bonding with people that I'd never met before, and now we're at a point where we get to go all across the world and treat patients with compassion and care, and I'm just so grateful to be here with all these people today.”

Gupta shared how meaningful this milestone is, especially as a first-generation medical student.

“I come from a family of immigrants. No one in my family has pursued a career in medicine, so I would not be here today without the support of every single one of my peers in the class of 2025, all of my mentors, and especially my parents, who sacrificed everything so that I could pursue all my dreams in the field of medicine.”

She also looked back on her journey through medical school.

“I moved to Michigan, not knowing a single soul here, so getting to know these compassionate and caring individuals makes me so proud to have grown alongside them…I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this class.”

Family and friends of the graduates shared in the joy and excitement of the day as immense feelings of pride filled the O’rena.

Janet Scheffler, the grandmother of Emelie-jo Nappo, M.D., noted her granddaughter’s determination since childhood to become a doctor.

“I have wonderful thoughts of her working so hard to achieve this – it’s just phenomenal. It’s truly priceless,” said Scheffler.

With a wide smile, she recalled Nappo’s early ambitions. 

“She’s been wanting to be a doctor since she was little, in the first grade,” said Scheffler. “I know she will be a great physician, who will be kind and help her patients, and she will do that because she has a good heart. She’ll be a great doctor.”

For more information, contact Andrew Dietderich, senior marketing specialist, OUWB, at [email protected].

To request an interview, visit the OUWB Communications & Marketing webpage.

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