Do you remember the first
time you knew you wanted
to be a chiropractor? You may
have witnessed the benefits
of chiropractic and thought
it would be wonderful to be
involved in a natural, drug-free
method of health care. Or maybe
your life was turned around by chiropractic after you had
a serious injury or long-term illness.
When I was in my teens, during a visit to my chiropractor,
he asked me what I was planning to do after high school. I
told him I wanted to go to college and eventually do something
that would help people and make a difference.
My chiropractor then said, “Have you ever considered chiropractic?”
To be honest, it hadn’t crossed my mind. But that simple
question got me thinking and would add focus to my career
plans, and lead me to a profession that is well-known for helping
people and making a difference in the world.
In this issue of Insights, we’re focusing on alumni who, like my
first chiropractor, are demonstrating to others how chiropractic
can be a very rewarding career and ultimately encouraging them
to pursue their chiropractic education at Palmer College. Often,
individuals who stand out as promising candidates for a D.C.
degree are those who have an interest in biology or physics, or
simply have a desire to make others feel better.
Turn to our features section in the middle of the magazine, and
you’ll learn about graduates from all three Palmer campuses who
have each developed their own innovative styles and techniques
for recruiting students to Palmer—whether to become D.C.s,
C.T.s or C.A.s. There’s also a write-up on what the College itself is
doing to draw students to Davenport, San Jose and Port Orange.
The Alumni Advisory Group, which first emerged at Homecoming
on the Davenport Campus last August, has already begun brainstorming
ways that the College can inform alumni about how to
recruit students. Their ideas include having recruiter training
materials; developing DVDs, PowerPoint presentations and other
materials for prospective students and career advisors; and a
standard recruiting message for all alumni to use.
What I often hear from alumni who refer students is that they
get a tremendous amount of joy watching the people they’ve
sent to Palmer become D.C.s and then talk about all of the
things they’ve been able to do for their patients. That’s when
they realize they’ve indirectly touched the lives of people whom
they will never meet. And that’s the most important reason for
sending the best students to the best chiropractic college.