In its fourth of a nationwide mural and event series to celebrate TCU’s Sesquicentennial, TCU spotlighted not one but four of its alumni. The university traveled to the Midwest to focus on Chicago-area graduates and spotlight Horned Frogs leading in the critical area of health care.
Area alumni and TCU leaders celebrated Dr. McKenna Chalman ’19 (M.D. ’23), Emma Joy ’21, Dr. Courtney Sullivan ’17 and Dr. Brandon Zsigray ’14 at an event June 22 following the launch of a large-scale, hand-painted mural featuring the four graduates.
“We have a room full of thriving alumni, parents and fans, and it is so great to be with you all,” Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. said at the event. “We’re honored to celebrate four outstanding alumni in Chicago in addition to all the Horned Frogs who are making an impact as doctors, nurses, clinicians and researchers.”
Chalman is a graduate of the inaugural class of the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at TCU and is beginning her residency in general surgery at Rush University in Chicago. Joy is a graduate of TCU’s Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences and is a registered nurse at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Sullivan and Zsigray are both graduates of TCU’s College of Science & Engineering’s Pre-Health Professions Institute and were Honors Laureates of the John V. Roach Honors College. Sullivan is doing her medical residency at the University of Chicago Medicine in obstetrics and gynecology, while Zsigray is completing his residency in neurosurgery at Loyola Medicine.
“We are so proud of you and thank you for being here with us this evening,” said President Daniel W. Pullin. “You represent the best of the best in what TCU has to offer the world – smart, dedicated, compassionate leaders who make an impact every day.”
On hand to celebrate were representatives from each of the alumni’s TCU colleges: Chris Watts, Marilyn & Morgan Davies Dean of Harris College; Dr. Stuart D. Flynn, founding dean of the Burnett School of Medicine; and Matt Chumchal, director of the Pre-Health Professions Institute in the College of Science & Engineering.
Throughout the mural events, a tradition has developed of ending the evening’s ceremony with a group Riff Ram. SuperFrog was in Chicago to lead the effort, but not before TCU leadership recognized Flynn and the Burnett School of Medicine for its recent accomplishment of becoming fully accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.
The Chicago mural installation is 18 feet high and 56 feet wide and is located at 1920 N Western Ave. in the Bucktown neighborhood. It includes the phrase, “Where you find empathy, you find healing.” It is scheduled to be on display through at least July 2.
The mural series is part of TCU’s Sesquicentennial celebration. The first three were unveiled in New York City, Los Angeles and Nashville and spotlighted John Devereaux ’12 of “Hamilton,” Katherine Beattie ’08, a producer/writer for “NCIS” and wheelchair athlete, and Desmond Bane ’20, an NBA player for the Memphis Grizzlies and a youth advocate. The final mural will debut in Fort Worth in fall 2023.
Learn more about the four TCU alumni leading on in health care.