Philip Pumerantz (November 3, 1932 - December 26, 2017), was an American educator and college administrator who was the founding president of Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU) in Pomona, California. When he retired in September 2015, he was one of the longest-serving university presidents in American history. [1]
Pumerantz was born on November 3, 1932, in New London, Connecticut, to Harry and Pauline Pumerantz. He attended New London and Hartford, Connecticut schools and graduated from Bulkeley School. After graduation, Pumerantz enlisted in the US Army, where he was assigned to military patrol duty at bases in West Germany. After two years of army service, he enrolled at the University of Connecticut, eventually earning bachelor's and master's degrees in history and education.
Beginning in 1959, Pumerantz taught history at Waterford High School in Waterford, Connecticut, where he also had corollary duties in administration and served as a supervising teacher for student teachers from the University of Connecticut and Central Connecticut State College). [2]
In September 1963, Pumerantz was named assistant principal at Tomlinson Junior High School in Fairfield, Connecticut. In 1967, he obtained his PhD in education from the University of Connecticut. Pumerantz then joined the faculty of the University of Bridgeport School of Education, and co-founded UB's College of Continuing Education. [3] After a few years as an educational consultant, during which time he and a colleague established a college in Puerto Rico that became Caribbean University, Pumerantz became the director of education for the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) in Chicago.
In the mid-1970s, Pumerantz was contacted by a small group of osteopathic physicians in California who wanted to establish an osteopathic medical school there. Pumerantz, though officially behind the idea in his AOA role, didn't think a new osteopathic school was feasible. "There was just too much lined up against it, and too many people who said it couldn't be done," he remembered. [4] However, many of the prominent osteopathic physicians in California (including Richard Eby, Ethan Allen, and Viola Fryman), finally convinced Pumerantz to lead the effort to establish a school."I had a list of reasons why it wouldn’t work, but when I started to think about it later, I realized a list of obstacles really was a plan to starting such a school," Pumerantz recalled. "You just needed to find a way around the obstacles." [5]
In September 1977, Pumerantz became the president of the new College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific (COMP), located in a largely abandoned shopping mall in downtown Pomona. COMP's first class of 36 students was admitted in October 1978. The College later acquired the former JC Penney building in the mall for division into classrooms, offices and an anatomy lab.
In 1982, 31 students graduated as Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine from COMP. In 1996, Pumerantz oversaw the restructuring of COMP into Western University of Health Sciences.
Under Pumerantz, the university grew to 3,900 students in nine different colleges with over 12,500 health sciences alumni. [6] WesternU had also grown to more than 1,100 staff and faculty, making it the fourth-largest employer in the Pomona Valley.
Pumerantz distilled his philosophy into this concept: "The discipline of learning. The art of caring."
The Chronicle of Higher Education has named WesternU one of its "Great Colleges to Work For" each year since 2012, with the 2014-16 recognitions including addition to the Chronicle Honor Roll as an institution with five or more areas of employment excellence. [7] Pumerantz himself was the recipient of numerous awards, including the 1995 Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Connecticut, the 1995 Dale Dodson Award for national leadership from the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine, and the 2010 Distinguished Educator Award from the Boy Scouts of America. In 2011, he was selected to receive the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor, [8] and in 2013 was given the Northwest Osteopathic Medical Foundation's Founders Award for Exceptional Accomplishment. He was listed in Who's Who in the East , Who's Who in the West, Who's Who in California, Who's Who in America, the Directory of International Biography, and in Outstanding Educators.[ citation needed ]
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Pumerantz co-authored four college textbooks in education and had numerous articles published in professional journals.
Pumerantz retired from WesternU in September 2015. [9] He transitioned to President Emeritus of the university, where he continued to work part-time until his death in 2017. [10]
Osteopathic medicine is a branch of the medical profession in the United States. Osteopathic physicians (DOs) are licensed to practice medicine and surgery in all 50 states and are recognized to varying degrees in 85 other countries. The field is distinct from osteopathic practices offered in nations outside of the U.S., whose graduates and practitioners are generally not considered part of core medical staff nor of medicine itself. Only graduates of American osteopathic medical colleges may practice the full scope of medicine and surgery generally considered to be medicine by the general public.
The University of Bridgeport (UB) is a private university in Bridgeport, Connecticut. The university is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education.
Midwestern University (MWU) is a private graduate medical and professional school with the main campus in Downers Grove, Illinois, and an additional campus in Glendale, Arizona. As of the 2020-21 academic year, a total of 2,998 students were enrolled at the Downers Grove campus and 3,945 were enrolled at the Glendale campus.
Des Moines University (DMU) is a private osteopathic medical and health sciences institution in Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1898, Des Moines University is the second oldest osteopathic medical school and the fifteenth largest medical school in the United States. DMU's three colleges – the College of Osteopathic Medicine, College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery, and College of Health Sciences – offer nine academic degrees, including master’s and doctorate degrees.
The American Osteopathic Association (AOA) is the representative member organization for the more than 145,000 osteopathic medical doctors (D.O.s) and osteopathic medical students in the United States. The AOA is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and is involved in post-graduate training for osteopathic physicians. Beginning in 2015, it began accrediting post-graduate education as a committee within ACGME, creating a unified accreditation system for all DOs and MDs in the United States. The organization promotes public health, encourages academic scientific research, serves as the primary certifying body for D.O.s overseeing 18 certifying boards, and is the accrediting agency for osteopathic medical schools through its Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation. As of October 2015, the AOA no longer owns the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program (HFAP), which accredited hospitals and other health care facilities.
Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU) is a private university with its main campus in Pomona, California, and an additional medical school in Lebanon, Oregon. WesternU offers degrees in osteopathic medicine, dental medicine, optometry, podiatric medicine, nursing, physician assistant studies, physical therapy, pharmacy, biomedical sciences, and veterinary medicine. With an enrollment of 3,814 students (2020-21), WesternU offers 21 academic programs in nine colleges.
Physicians in the United States hold either the Doctor of Medicine degree (MD) or the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree (DO). Institutions awarding the MD are accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates (ECFMG). Institutions awarding the DO are accredited by the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA). The MD degree is obtained at either domestic or international schools. The DO degree is obtained at domestic schools only. Foreign-trained osteopaths are not recognized as physicians in the United States.
The American Osteopathic Association's (AOA) Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) accredits medical schools granting the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree in the United States. The US Department of Education lists the Commission as a recognized accreditor.
The New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYIT-COM) is a private, non-profit medical school for osteopathic medicine located primarily in Old Westbury, Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. It also has a degree-granting campus in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Founded in 1977, NYIT-COM is an academic division of the New York Institute of Technology. Formerly known as the New York College of Osteopathic Medicine, it is one of the largest medical schools in the United States.
Rocky Vista University (RVU) is a private, for-profit osteopathic medical school with campus locations in Parker, Colorado and Ivins, Utah. The school opened in 2006 as the only modern for-profit medical school in the United States, although other for-profit schools have since opened. RVU's College of Osteopathic Medicine (RVUCOM) grants the degree of Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine and admitted its inaugural class of medical students at the Parker, Colorado campus in August 2008.
Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine is a professional doctoral degree of osteopathic medicine offered by medical schools in the United States. A DO graduate may become licensed as an osteopathic physician, similar to a physician who has earned the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. There is a distinction between osteopathic physicians trained within the United States and those trained outside of the United States. Osteopathic physicians, or DOs, currently have unlimited practice rights in roughly 74 countries, with partial practice rights in many more; DOs have full practice rights in all 50 US states. As of 2018, there were more than 145,000 osteopathic physicians and osteopathic medical students in the United States.
The Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents (COSGP) was established in 1972 as an official council of the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) to serve as the official national representative voting voice of osteopathic medical students. There are currently 35 accredited colleges of osteopathic medicine that offer the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (DO) degree, with 56 locations in 33 states nationwide. The council includes a student representatives from each of these schools. COSGP serves as a national voting body within AACOM and the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) and represents the collective voice of osteopathic medical students.
Western University College of Podiatric Medicine (WesternU-CPM) is a podiatric medical school at Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU) based in Pomona, California. WesternU-CPM is one of nine podiatric medical schools in the United States, and one of nine colleges at Western University of Health Sciences. The school was founded in 2009 with an inaugural class of 38 students and is fully accredited by the American Podiatric Medical Association's Council on Podiatric Medical Education (CPME). Westernu-CPM offers a four-year professional degree program leading to the degree Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM).
The College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Northwest is a non-profit, private, medical school for osteopathic medicine located in Lebanon, in the U.S. state of Oregon. Opened in 2011, the school is a branch campus of Western University of Health Sciences' College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, and is operated in partnership with Samaritan Health Services. Graduates of the college receive the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree. The university plans to eventually open additional colleges at the Lebanon campus.
The College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific (COMP) is a private, non-profit medical school for osteopathic medicine located in downtown Pomona, in the U.S. state of California. The college opened in 1977 as the only osteopathic medical school west of the Rocky Mountains. COMP was the founding program of Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU), which now has 8 colleges in addition to COMP, each offering professional degrees in various fields of healthcare. COMP has a single 4-year program, conferring the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) degree. Graduates are eligible to practice medicine in all 50 states and more than 85 countries.
The Western University College of Veterinary Medicine is a non-profit, private, veterinary medical school at Western University of Health Sciences located in Pomona, in the US state of California. The college consists of about 400 veterinary medical students, and confers the degree Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. The college was established in 1998 as the first veterinary school to open in the country in 20 years. The college is fully accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O. is an American physician, academic, and the first African-American woman to serve as dean of a U.S. medical school. She majored in biology and chemistry at Wayne State University, graduating in 1965. Then, in 1969, she entered Michigan State University's College of Osteopathic Medicine. Ross-Lee then went on to open her own private family practice, teach as a professor, and hold other positions within the medical community, until 1993 when she was elected as the first woman dean of a medical school, at Ohio University's Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine. She has earned several awards and honors for her work and accomplishments.
Clinton E. Adams is an osteopathic physician, former medical school dean at Western University of Health Sciences, and current president of Rocky Vista University. He serves as a member of the board of directors at Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.
California Health Sciences University (CHSU) is a private, for-profit university located in Clovis, in the U.S. state of California. Founded in 2012, the school operates two academic programs, which offer doctoral degrees in pharmacy and osteopathic medicine. Graduates of the College of Osteopathic Medicine will receive the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree. The College of Osteopathic Medicine holds candidate status by the American Osteopathic Association's (AOA) Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA).
