A new take on the white coat ceremony

MUSC Hollings Cancer Center annually selects undergraduate students from South Carolina State University, considered a historically black college or university, to get involved with cancer research while expanding their scientific network.

This initiative of the National Cancer Institute-funded South Carolina Cancer Disparities Research Center (SC CADRE) was developed and is co-directed by Marvella E. Ford, Ph.D., the Endowed Chair of Cancer Disparities, and Judith Salley, Ph.D., chairwoman of the Department of Biological and Physical Sciences at SCSU. During the program, SCSU students are paired with MUSC Hollings Cancer Center researcher mentors, conduct a mentor-guided summer cancer research project and also have the opportunity to participate in a white coat ceremony.

"Now that I wear my Hollings white coat, it gives me a sense of pride to know that I’m still working toward my goals."

-- Taryn Sparkman

Traditionally, the white coat ceremony has been a rite of passage for students entering medical school, meant to commemorate their entrance into the medical profession. Ford has adapted this ceremony to motivate undergraduate students from historically underrepresented communities to pursue a career in cancer research.

“When I walked in and saw my family members, I was overwhelmed with joy,” said Taryn Sparkman, an ambitious undergraduate at SCSU who receives summer cancer research funding from SC CADRE. She is also a recipient of an MUSC Hollings Cancer Center LOWVELO scholarship, which provides tuition funding during the SCSU academic year.

Sparkman’s interest in medicine and research started as a young girl when she saw her mother working directly with physicians and nurses in the Emergency Department. As she progressed in her education, Sparkman realized her long-term goal was to become a physician-scientist who studies the intersection between gynecological issues and cancer.

Having the chance to attend the white coat ceremony was a life-changing experience for Sparkman as she navigates the next steps of her educational journey.

“Now that I wear my Hollings white coat, it gives me a sense of pride to know that I’m still working toward my goals,” she said.

Not only has Sparkman benefited from the SC CADRE summer program and the LOWVELO scholarship, but she also plans to make more of her peers at SCSU aware of these opportunities.

“We have to take advantage of every opportunity given because you never know what may come out of it,” she said.

In leading training initiatives like SC CADRE that engage students who have been historically underrepresented in the field of cancer research, Ford is fulfilling Hollings’s mission to ensure that the next generation of cancer researchers is representative of the communities they serve.