Jonathan Lugo made up his mind four years ago that he wanted to attend UTMB to get his medical degree.
And then Hurricane Ike hit, essentially flooding the entire island of Galveston. Did Lugo have second thoughts about going to UTMB? “I had faith and there was no doubt in my mind that UTMB would continue to be a great place,” Lugo said. “I just knew it was in their cohesive nature to adapt and make it even better than it was before. I knew that I would get a great education and training here.”
And so, Lugo became Dr. Lugo on Saturday, June 1, when he and more than 200 members of the 123rd class of medical students graduated from
UTMB’s School of Medicine.
In 2009, Erica Saenz, of San Antonio, had been accepted to UTMB’s School of Medicine. She thought briefly that no one else would want to go there in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. Another Texas medical school also had accepted her. But a UTMB prep program, a “mini-medical school” in the summer of 2009, convinced her that UTMB was right for her. “I liked the small-town feel of the island and you’re still close to Houston,” she said. “And I liked that the entire island is for UTMB.”
The graduation ceremony took place at the Moody Gardens Convention Center, with former state Sen. Steve Ogden featured as the keynote speaker. (Please see links below to view videos of graduation ceremony, speakers and awards).
“Senator Ogden worked diligently to help the people of Galveston, surrounding communities and UTMB recover from Hurricane Ike, and we are grateful that he honored us with his presence at our graduation ceremony and for his support,” said Dr. Danny O. Jacobs, executive vice president and provost and dean of the School of Medicine.
Ogden served as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee from 2004 until he retired earlier this year.
After commencement, Saenz was commissioned a captain in the U.S. Air Force and will be a resident in internal medicine at the medical center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.
Lugo will begin his move to Odessa, Texas where he will be a resident in OB/GYN at the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center and its affiliates, including Medical Center Hospital in Odessa.
School of Medicine Commencement Awards 2013
The William N. and Ida Zinn Alpha Omega Alpha Award
Karan Akshay Patel
The James W. Powers Memorial Award
Richard W. Goodgame, MD
Professor, Department of Internal Medicine
William Osler Scholar, John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine
The 2013 Gold-Headed Cane Award
Htin Aung
American Academy of Neurology Medical Student Prize for Excellence in Neurology
Elizabeth Joan Chambers
AMWA’s Glasgow-Rubin Achievement Citations
Jobeth Bourque Brown
Teryn Durea Driver
Alison Cyr Lowe
Kristina Montemayor
Shani Joanne Ortiz
Elizabeth Drone Schepp
Jessica Dawn Swanson
Miranda Adanna Uzoma
Bridget Mary Wagner
Herman A. Barnett Memorial Awards
Bryan Patrick Aduddell
Chelsea Altinger Casey
Stefan Philip Gilthorpe
Richard Leechee Lu
Mark Asher Schusterman II
Shelly Renee Wilson
Best Original Essay for “Skin Diseases Depicted in Cinema”
Joseph Albright Stafford
Truman Graves Blocker, Jr. Scholars Awards
John Francis Anderson
Shelly Renee Wilson
Johanna Blumel Memorial Scholarship
Elizabeth Drone Schepp
Isabella H. Brackenridge Scholarship
Kristina Montemayor
John R. Calverley, M.D. Award for Excellence in Neurology
Taylor Stewart Howard
The Campbell Family Scholarship in Honor of Winfield M Campbell, Jr., MD
Jason Michael Burrow
Karan Akshay Patel
The Benjamin S. Carson Sr., M.D. and Candy Carson Scholarship
Miranda Adanna Uzoma
Dean’s Award for Research Excellence
Shani Joanne Ortiz
Distinguished Student Award in Pediatrics
Jason Michael Burrows
Division of Emergency Medicine Student Award
Jessica Dawn Swanson
Claire Donovan Medical Education Scholarship
Jobeth Bourque Brown
Christopher James Deuel
Nam Hoang Nguyen
The Donald Duncan Memorial Scholarship in Anatomy
Lindsay Jean Jinkins
William Kyle Wilson
Hamilton Ford Award for Psychiatry in Medicine
Joseph Scott Shotwell
Thomas W. Freese Memorial Award for Excellence in Dermatology
Alison Cyr Lowe
Hambrock-McGanity Awards in Obstetrics and Gynecology
Jessica Swanson, First Place
Kristina Montemayor, Second Place
Teryn Driver, Third Place
History of Dermatology Award
Michael Wayne Lindsey
Tonya Johnson Memorial Award
Taylor Stewart Howard
Joseph B. Kass Award for Research
Taylor Stewart Howard
Mavis P. Kelsey, M.D., Excellence in Medicine Award
Taylor Stewart Howard, Mavis P. Kelsey Award
Curtis W. Lambert Scholarship
Patrick Andrew Armstrong
Edward J. and Ellie Weisiger Lefeber, Sr., Prize in Geriatric Medicine
Diana Lynn Torres Aluyen, Lefeber Scholar in Gerontology
George Edward Longshie Scholarship
Kristina Montemayer
William L. Marr Award in Medicine
Kershaw Viraf Patel
The John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine Award for Excellence in Basic Sciences or Humanities
John Randolph Dryden
The John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine Student Award
Htin Aung
The John P. McGovern Student Awards in Oslerian Medicine Student Scholars, John P. McGovern Academy of Oslerian Medicine
Rosalyn Omobola Adigun
John Edward Arvesen
David Patrick Darrow
John Randolph Dryden
Christina Emily Gomez-Mira
Phillip Joseph Hoverstadt
John P. McGovern Practice of Medicine 3 Professionalism Essay Award
Bonnie Marie Reed
Merck Manual Awards
Rosalind Omobola Adigun
Phillip Joseph Hoverstadt
Rachel Alyssa Marinch
Priscila Emmanuel Martinez
Nam Hoang Nguyen
William Todd Midgett, M.D., Award for Superior Clinical Practice
Karan Akshay Patel
William H. Nash, M.D. Endowed Award in Obstetrics and Gynecology
Teryn Durea Driver
W. D. and Laura Nell Nicholson Award in Family Medicine
Christopher James Deuel
The Edward Randall Medals for Academic Excellence
Michael Stephen Achilleos
John Francis Anderson
Jason Michael Burrows
Mark Stevens Clee
Taylor Stewart Howard
Edgar B. Smith Endowed Scholarship in Dermatology
Elizabeth Drone Schepp
Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Award
Stephanie Carisa Rhoades
The L. Clarke Stout Jr. Award for Excellence in Pathology
Crystal Renee Montgomery-Goecker
Texas Chapter of the American College of Emergency Physicians Award
James Adam Moore
The John “Jack” Wallace, M.D. Prize in Cardiology
Kershaw Viraf Patel
Bennie O. White, M.D., and Irene C. White Scholarship
Jonathan Wesley Law Coppin
Below are links to all videos of the UTMB School of Medicine Ceremony: