TALLAHASSEE — Florida State University's College of Medicine has named its auditorium for the late Florida Sen. Durell Peaden, a Crestview physician who sponsored legislation creating the medical school in 2000.
The naming ceremony will take place 4:30 p.m. Oct. 5 at FSU College of Medicine Auditorium, 1115 W. Call St., Tallahassee.
FSU President John Thrasher, Florida’s House speaker at the time, will be present, as will numerous other current and former legislators.
Also being named for Peaden is the college’s Rural Medical Education Program.
Peaden was concerned for years that not enough new physicians were available to replace aging doctors in the Florida Panhandle's rural towns. In the late 1990s, he began conversations with FSU administrators that ultimately led to the College of Medicine’s establishment.
Previously, in FSU’s Program in Medical Sciences, students completed their first year of medical school and transferred to the University of Florida to complete their studies.
Like PIMS, the College of Medicine targets a diverse array of students, including those from traditionally underserved communities, and stresses primary care, patient-centered medicine and hands-on learning directly from community physicians.
The College of Medicine’s first class graduated in 2005. Almost 270 current and former students have come to the medical school from Panhandle towns, and more than 50 alumni now practice in the Panhandle.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: FSU College of Medicine Auditorium named for late Crestview physician