E-Pylons WVU Medical Students

12/14/2025

Often referred to as the Festival of Lights or Feast of Dedication, Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday that commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple (also known as the Second Temple) in Jerusalem. It is customary for observers to light a candle of a menorah each evening. Regions and families vary on specific customs performed. However, other common events include the eating of food baked or fried in oil, children playing with a dreidel, and distribution of Hanukkah gelt (coins and chocolate that resemble coins). Learn more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah

12/13/2025

Today more than 50 people joined our admissions team who hosted an open house for prospective MD degree students. The group had tours of the health science center and our simulation center which is in an elite group of of centers certified in so many different aspects of simulation including teaching, assessment, research and systems integration. LET'S GO!

12/13/2025

Chelsey Hoy, our medical school recruitment specialist, talked with high school students from around the state about the WVU School of Medicine Mountaineer Accelerated Pathway (MAP) to MD program at yesterday's Academic Exploration Day. We hope all those students who visited the health sciences center see the value in attending an R1 research university and having such a wonderful list of majors to select. LET'S GO!

12/13/2025

St. Lucia’s Day is a festival of lights celebrated in Italy, Sweden, Norway, and parts of Finland on December 13. An early Christian martyr, St. Lucia, was killed by the Romans in AD 304. Local festivals begin with a parade featuring girls dressed in white and wearing lighted wreaths on their heads and boys dressed in white pajama-like costume singing traditional songs. The festival marks the beginning of the Christmas season in Scandinavia, and it is meant to bring hope and light during the long winter days. Learn more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Lucy%27s_Day

12/12/2025

On this day, people from all over Mexico travel to the chapel at Tepayac Hill in Mexico City, where the mother of Jesus is said to have appeared before an Indian peasant named Juan Diego in 1531. Mary told Juan to go to the bishop and ask that a church be built on the hill so she could be close to her people. The bishop, seeking proof of this vision, asked Juan to have a miracle performed by Mary. Juan returned to Tepayac Hill and found roses growing where there had only been cacti. Further, the peasant was said to have found an image of the Virgin Mary on the inside of his cloak. The bishop was convinced, and the chapel was built. Fiestas are held throughout Mexico and Central America to honor the Virgin Mary. Learn more here: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Our-Lady-of-Guadalupe-patron-saint-of-Mexico

12/11/2025

Thank you Dr. Miller for taking the lead on establishing a Class of 1980 scholarship to support our students!

A retired ophthalmologist is celebrating the 45th anniversary of his graduation from the West Virginia University School of Medicine with a $50,000 scholarship gift to benefit future medical students from West Virginia.

12/11/2025

Admissions Dean and Professor of Medical Education and Pediatrics, Dr. Linda Nield, and several of our medical students hosted a mock “morning report” for 91 of our pre-med students introducing them to obtaining a patient history and generating a differential diagnosis. Well done team!

12/10/2025

Today is "Match Day" for our students in the military. Congratulations to future doctors Coyne and Watcher who both matched in psychiatry. Nick is headed to Wright Patterson AFB and Mike is headed to Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii.

12/09/2025

This evening many of our Student Services team on the Morgantown campus spent the evening volunteering at WVU Medicine’s Rosenbaum Family House serving a homecooked meal for their residents.

12/07/2025

Today we remember the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The attack occurred 83 years ago and quickly pulled the United States into World War II. To learn more, visit https://www.nps.gov/perl/learn/historyculture/national-pearl-harbor-remembrance-day.htm

12/06/2025

Today is St. Nicholas Day. This tradition in Europe includes a festival for children and perpetuates the saint’s reputation as a bringer of gifts. In some Germanic traditions, children put out a boot on December 5th. St. Nicholas stops by the house on that night and checks to see how polite and well behaved the children had been that year. If they had been, he fills the boot with candy and gifts. If not, children may wake to find tree branches in their boot. The American Santa Claus, as well as the Anglo-Canadian and British Father Christmas, derive from these traditions. "Santa Claus" is also derived in part from the Dutch Sinterklaas. This image of St. Nicholas is from the early 15th century (Metropolitan Museum of Art). Read more here: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Nicholas-Day

12/05/2025

On Tuesday, December 2, 2025, the WVU Med Music Outreach Group performed a set of Christmas songs at Heritage Home, bringing festive cheer to residents through both vocal and instrumental music. The seniors who attended were warm, engaged, and delighted to sing along. And, as always, they end the set with Take Me Home, Country Roads! by John Denver. Med Music Outreach meets once a month to play and are seeking more WVU medical students to join! To learn more or get involved, contact organization president Regan Cochran rbc0007@mix.wvu.edu or faculty advisor Dr. Lama (alama@hsc.wvu.edu) .