Old Westbury, N.Y.  (May 18, 2012)  ̶  Forty-eight students in the Class of 2012’s Physician Assistant Studies program traded waist-length jackets for long white coats as they celebrated their new career just two days before NYIT’s commencement.

 

“I believe that you are the investment of the future,” said Dr. Patricia Chute, dean of the School of Health Professions.

 

Associate Professor Lawrence Herman, the newly elected president of the American Academy of Physicians Assistants, sounded an optimistic note as he told the graduates that the number of physician assistants nationwide is expected to double over the next decade to 200,000.

 

“Demand is anticipated to increase,” Herman said. “Clearly, there is no dearth of jobs for bright, hardworking PAs.”

  

Student speaker John Katsetos urged his classmates to be the “pillar of trust, the provider of hope, and the person who will always do good.”

 

Dr. Salvatore Barese, an associate professor and chair of the department, helped each new physician assistant don a white coat. Barese noted that the department this year had the most publications and presentations to professional organizations in its 12-year history.

 

About NYIT

New York Institute of Technology (NYIT) offers 90 degree programs, including undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees, in more than 50 fields of study, including architecture and design; arts and sciences; education; engineering and computing sciences; health professions; management; and osteopathic medicine. A non-profit independent, private institution of higher education, NYIT has 14,000 students attending campuses on Long Island and Manhattan, online, and at its global campuses. NYIT sponsors 11 NCAA Division II programs and one Division I team.

 

Led by President Edward Guiliano, NYIT is guided by its mission to provide career-oriented professional education, offer access to opportunity to all qualified students, and support applications-oriented research that benefits the larger world. To date, 89,000 graduates have received degrees from NYIT. For more information, visit nyit.edu.

 

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Elaine Iandoli

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