Physician Assistant Program Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony

By Danica Fisher ’05, October 22, 2021

New downtown instructional site holds formal community opening.

Interim Ithaca College president La Jerne Terry Cornish and former president Shirley M. Collado join with Ithaca mayor Svante Myrick to cut the ribbon at the new downtown PA building. (Photo Credit: Dave Burbank)

Ithaca College’s new Master of Science in Physician Assistant (PA) Studies program’s supplemental instructional site located on the downtown Ithaca Commons held a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the City of Ithaca on Thursday, Oct. 21. In attendance were members of the college’s board of trustees and IC administrators, staff, faculty, and students, along with local government, economic development and health care representatives.

The new space includes a clinical learning center and a simulation center with advanced technology that will provide students with the opportunity for hands-on practice and for faculty to observe the students in practice.

“Ithaca College has shown institutional support of its new PA program by providing an educational space with high-fidelity mannequins and state-of-the art technologies to ensure their PA graduates are well trained and competent to provide clinical care to patients in our communities,” said Susan Salahshor, director of the PA program.

Interim president La Jerne Terry Cornish and former president Shirley M. Collado—under whose leadership the program was created—both offered thanks to those involved in the development of the program, including Linda Petrosino, dean of the School of Health Sciences and Human Performance; Marty Stallone, president and CEO of Cayuga Medical Center and Cayuga Health System; and Salahshor.

“The learners who choose Ithaca College to advance their interest in medical sciences will have opportunities to contribute to their field of study in a way that elevates equity and centers the needs of the frequently marginalized. This orientation connects strongly to Ithaca College’s strategic plan, Ithaca Forever. Ithaca Forever sets the college’s sights on a vision of being a global destination for bold thinkers who seek to build thriving communities. The Physician Assistant Studies Program is a key part of our strategic plan—and it will do just that.”

La Jerne Terry Cornish, interim president

“The learners who choose Ithaca College to advance their interest in medical sciences will have opportunities to contribute to their field of study in a way that elevates equity and centers the needs of the frequently marginalized,” said Cornish at the ceremony. “This orientation connects strongly to Ithaca College’s strategic plan, Ithaca Forever. Ithaca Forever sets the college’s sights on a vision of being a global destination for bold thinkers who seek to build thriving communities. The Physician Assistant Studies Program is a key part of our strategic plan—and it will do just that.”

“For those of us on South Hill, the PA program presents exciting opportunities to build, strengthen and align our partnerships within Tompkins County. It also carries with it a commitment to locate the hub of this learning community right here in downtown Ithaca, and this is what it means to be Ithaca’s college,” said Collado, who called the launch of this program one of her proudest moments as president.

Susan Salahshor, director of the PA program, surrounded by the first cohort of PA students at Ithaca College. (Photo Credit: Dave Burbank)

The program’s goals include recruiting, selecting and retaining highly qualified, diverse applicants, and meeting the needs of patients from diverse backgrounds in the local community.

Svante Myrick, mayor of Ithaca, helped cut the ceremonial ribbon and praised the vision of those who developed and implemented this program.

“The choice of not only pursuing a program that will increase the ranks of the healers but making sure that the first cohort is as diverse a people I think I’ve ever seen,” said Myrick. “There’s this choice you’ve made and executed so beautifully and it’s going to make our city even better.”

Thirty learners comprise the program’s first cohort (class of 2023) and hail from 14 states and hold undergraduate degrees from institutions as near as Ithaca College and Colgate University and as far as the University of Colorado and Arizona State University. The learners were present at the ceremony and offered tours of the facility after the ribbon cutting.

“I think the downtown PA facility is excellent,” said Justin Cerdena ’23. “It feels like it’s really been crafted with the thought of the learners in mind and giving us an environment where we would best thrive in our studies. This is by far that most unique offering that I’ve seen from a program, and I think it’s really just an amazing place to be.”

It was announced earlier this week that a $1 million gift from longtime Ithaca College philanthropists Manley H. and Doriseve “Dodie” Thaler will endow a scholarship to facilitate access to the program. The Manley and Doriseve Thaler Physician Assistant Program Endowed Recruitment Scholarship provides support for the duration of the program to learners who demonstrate financial need and remain in good standing.

Ithaca College was awarded approximately $1.6 million through the New York State Higher Education Capital Matching Grant Program (HECap) toward the construction and renovation of the Ithaca Commons site. The grant program is part of an initiative to support health care education by modernizing facilities and enhancing student learning while supporting economic development. This supplemental instructional site will bring PA students and faculty to the center of the community that they will help serve.

For more information about Physician Assistant Studies at Ithaca College and to apply, visit the program's website.

Grand Opening of Physician Assistant Program Instructional Site

Watch the ribbon-cutting ceremony in the heart of downtown Ithaca at WENY.