CMSRU welcomes largest entering class in school history at White Coat Ceremony

Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU) formally welcomed 120 members of the Class of 2030 into the medical profession during its annual White Coat Ceremony, marking the largest incoming class in the school's history.

Held Aug. 7 at Pfleeger Concert Hall on Rowan University’s Glassboro campus, the ceremony celebrated the beginning of the students' medical education journey and their formal entry into the profession. Family members, friends, faculty, university leaders and healthcare partners gathered to witness the tradition, during which students received their first white coats, were presented with stethoscopes and recited The Physician's Pledge – a modern version of the Hippocratic Oath.

The Class of 2030 includes 89 New Jersey residents and 32 students representing 10 additional states: California, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Vermont. The class also includes 10 Rowan University alumni, including two graduates of Rowan's accelerated 3+4 program. Four students previously participated in CMSRU's PULSE program, the school's six-week summer initiative for undergraduates designed to strengthen the pathway to careers in medicine.

As students donned their white coats for the first time, speakers returned repeatedly to the importance of humanism, empathy and service in medicine.

"The coat itself is only cloth," Dean Annette C. Reboli, MD, told students. "Its meaning comes from you, from the courage, curiosity, and compassion you choose to carry within it."

Reboli reminded students that while medical education will challenge them intellectually, the values that define great physicians are developed over time through experience, reflection and service to others.

"Class of 2030, your journey begins today," she said. "May you fill your coat with purpose, humanity, and the unwavering desire to heal."

The ceremony featured remarks from Rowan University Chancellor Anthony Lowman and a special greeting from Jodi Langsfeld, EdD, chief operating officer of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, the organization that established the nation's first White Coat Ceremony in 1993. The foundation's White Coat Ceremony was created to emphasize compassionate, patient-centered care at the very beginning of medical training.

Drawing on the story of Gold Foundation co-founder Arnold P. Gold, MD, Langsfeld challenged students to remember that medicine is about caring for people, not simply treating disease.

"Humanism and excellence are not opposites," Langsfeld said. "They are partners."

She encouraged students to approach patients with curiosity, humility and understanding.

"Assume people are doing the best they can with the information, experiences, fears, and barriers they carry," she said. "That mindset keeps healthcare human."

The keynote address was delivered by Mara Gordon, MD, assistant professor of family medicine at CMSRU, core faculty member in the Edward D. Viner Center for Humanism and a nationally recognized physician-journalist whose work has appeared on NPR, in The New York Times and in The Atlantic.

Drawing from her experiences as a family physician and the personal challenges of helping care for her parents during serious illness, Gordon urged students to preserve their humanity throughout medical training and beyond.

Instead of focusing on intelligence or academic achievement, Gordon praised the compassion and service that had already distinguished the incoming class.

"You have founded organizations that help your communities, volunteered your time and expertise to people who need your help, and shown so much care and compassion to those who are vulnerable," she said. "Those are the traits that will serve you well as you embark on this exciting next step towards becoming physicians."

Offering what she called "five profoundly unscientific tips about staying human," Gordon encouraged students to listen deeply to patients' stories, embrace uncertainty, pursue advocacy and seek joy throughout their careers.

"Empathy is your superpower," Gordon said. "There is nothing—nothing—that can replace sitting with your patient, looking them in the eye, and saying truthfully, 'I am here with you.'"

A highlight of the ceremony was the ceremonial cloaking, during which students were cloaked by one of their advisors. In addition, each student received a professional stethoscope presented by Joseph Montella, MD, chief medical officer of Cooper University Health Care, and Michael Goodman, MD, president of the Cooper Medical Staff.

The ceremony concluded with students standing alongside physicians in attendance to recite The Physician's Pledge, a modern version of the Declaration of Geneva, reaffirming their commitment to ethical practice, compassion, human rights and service to humanity.

As the only M.D.-granting medical school in southern New Jersey, CMSRU serves as a critical driver of the region's healthcare workforce and maintains a longstanding commitment to service, community engagement and health equity. Since graduating its charter class in 2016, the medical school has graduated more than 950 physicians who are now practicing medicine, conducting research, teaching future healthcare professionals and serving patients in communities across the region and the country. The medical school was recognized by U.S. News & World Report as a 2026 Best Medical School for the third consecutive year, earning a Tier 2 rating in Primary Care and a Tier 3 rating in Research.

Founded in partnership with Rowan University and Cooper University Health Care, CMSRU has also earned national recognition for community engagement, including the Association of American Medical Colleges' Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Engagement.

For the Class of 2030, however, the day's most enduring lessons centered on the responsibility that accompanies the privilege of caring for others and the importance of remaining human in the practice of medicine.

As Reboli told the incoming students, "The promise you make today is the Hippocratic Oath. When you speak those words, you join a lineage of healers stretching across continents and centuries."