Welcome to Marshall B. Ketchum University.
I would like to extend my congratulations and best wishes to the students at the Southern California College of Optometry and the School of Physician Assistant Studies and wish you luck in all your future endeavors. However, I want to extend a warm welcome to the incoming class of 2027 to the College of Pharmacy.
By this point, there’s no doubt that you’re eager to begin and have every right to be. Less than a year ago, I was in your seat. This is what I wish for you and your life in Pharmacy School. I wish for you to be ambitious, and bold. Approach that professor’s office. Send that intimidating email. Raise your hand, in class. Share thoughts with a classmate. Be ready to hit the ground running, and if I may say so, fight for your grade in every class you are in. Don’t allow one test to get you down. Don’t be deterred by an upperclassman’s experience. Your adventure and experience are your own. We, the class of 2026, dare you to make it better. This is a four-year commitment, during which time you will quickly discover that you are working with some of the most intelligent professors who will have an impact on your life-they already have on mine-and that your classmates will become your family. One last thing: remember to take pleasure in this moment. Even though I’m only in my second year, everything already feels bittersweet.
May you never forget that your professors, faculty, and classes that came before you will walk with you and encourage you.
