October 2005

Palmer Alumni Association votes 'No Confidence' in college

The Palmer College of Chiropractic International Alumni Association (PCCIAA) held its first successful Homecoming after being disenfranchised by the Palmer College of Chiropractic and the Palmer College Board of Trustees.

Dr. Scott Harris, president of the PCCIAA, noted, "We are re‑energized by the attendance, participation, involvement and dedication of so many prominent Palmer alumni. We are also amazed at the overwhelming support of Palmer College of Chiropractic students, faculty and staff that were in attendance this weekend."

The highlight of the weekend was a dinner to honor long time chiropractor Dr. William Holmberg. The dinner was attended by over 200 prominent alumni, community leaders, and friends. The chiropractic icon was honored for his long time commitment to Palmer College of Chiropractic and the PCCIAA.

Holmberg, who was recently terminated by the college, is credited with building the PCCIAA as the pre‑eminent chiropractic alumni association in the world, single‑handedly spurring the chiropractic centennial celebration and leading the effort to raise money for the Wilk anti‑trust lawsuit in the 1970s.

As one in attendance said, "This is the way to honor a legend; thanks to the PCCIAA for not forgetting someone who gave his whole professional life to Palmer College and chiropractic."

Another highlight of the weekend was a student 'Spizz' night and kick‑off of a new PCCIAA student mentoring program. At 'Spizz' night, more than 150 students and 50 alumni gathered to discuss chiropractic and how to be successful.

"The level of excitement, passion, and honesty that is present here this weekend is something that, in my opinion, has been lacking at the school lately," admitted Palmer student Ben Kuhn. "The level of support that the alumni are offering students while asking nothing in return other than to be able to freely give that support is incredible and I think vital to our success as future chiropractors. The actions against the alumni on behalf of the board by Ms. Palmer and Mr. Patten in light of what the alumni have to offer the school is completely incomprehensible to me. They claim to have the best interests of the  student in mind, but I choose to support the PCCIAA in this battle because they are the only ones who have clearly and actively shown an interest in supporting the students of Palmer."

The PCCIAA honored Dr. Scott Harris as the Alumnus of the Year for 2005, recognizing his leadership over the past year and his steadfast support of Palmer College and the PCCIAA. In addition, PCCIAA members in attendance voted in three separate votes of "No Confidence" for Ms. Vickie Palmer, Mr. Larry Patten, and the PCC Board of Trustees.

Dr. Ted Conger, 2nd V.P. of the PCCIAA stated, "The leadership of Palmer is unrealistic about what it takes as a practicing chiropractor to fully support their college. If they think that Palmer alumni are going to blindly follow them, this vote should be a message that they are wrong. If they think Palmer alumni are going to give money to the college while at the same time being told that the college only wants to hear positive comments about the college and that the college will not stand for any negative comments about the BOT or Mr. Patten, this vote should tell them that they are wrong.  Free speech doesn't stop once you get on top of Brady Hill."

During its meetings, the PCCIAA also re‑affirmed its support of Palmer College, its faculty, staff and students.

One alumnus in attendance stated, "It is important for every alumnus to know that the PCCIAA was never interested in control of the college or the Board of Trustees. That is simply a ridiculous statement that keeps being stated by those in power at the college. The PCCIAA has only been interested in its mission of supporting, perpetuating and promoting the college.

"Maybe the time has come that in order to perpetuate and support the college includes speaking out against a system of certificate holders, conflicts of interest among the members of the BOT, and non‑chiropractors making decisions concerning the future of the Fountainhead and, subsequently, chiropractic."

When asked about the outcome of the PCCIAA Homecoming, Dr. Harris stated, "I am incredibly flattered with the support of all of the alumni over the past year. With the Palmer College filling lawsuits against me and others, with the college threatening other PCCIAA officers and fellow alumni with lawsuits and arrests if they step on campus, I am even more steadfast with the direction of the PCCIAA. We will continue to support Palmer College of Chiropractic in spite of the actions of a people in a position of power."