2026 White Coat Ceremony

On Sept. 11, the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) celebrated the 220 members of its newest class of medical students with a ceremony that marked the beginning of their commitment to the osteopathic profession and a life spent serving patients.

The White Coat Ceremony served as an official welcome to WVSOM’s Class of 2030, with students’ families and friends gathering to see them receive the coats they’ll wear throughout their years in medical school.

The class includes 82 students from West Virginia — the highest number of in-state students in the school’s history. Twenty-six members of the class are graduates of WVSOM’s Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences degreeprogram.

Dara Aliff, D.O., was the ceremony’s keynote speaker. A West Virginia native and WVSOM Class of 1999 alumna, she founded Premier Women’s Health Specialists PLLC, a Charleston, W.Va., OB-GYN practice that has provided care to tens of thousands of women since 2009.  

Read the full article here: 

https://www.wvsom.edu/news/2026/september/white-coat-speaker-stresses-importance-navigating-patient-care-self-care