- February 20, 2025
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Skyla Griswold always dreamed of becoming a doctor of osteopathic medicine.
Growing up in Orlando, Griswold didn’t want to go far from home to go to medical school. So when she heard the rumors of Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine being built in Horizon West, she knew she had to enroll.
“I set it in my mind that I wanted to be here or nowhere else,” Griswold said.
Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine welcomed Griswold and 96 other students as part of the school’s inaugural class in August 2024.
The class came together Wednesday, Jan. 22, to commemorate the start of the medical school with a time capsule.
Griswold and classmate Alexa-Marie Campbell looked over the table filled with items to be put in the time capsule, which was buried outside in front of the main entrance to the campus.
The time capsule included photos of the memories made so far, a copy of the article written in the Southwest Orange Observer about the opening of the school, Polaroid photos students and staff took during the Jan. 22 celebration, a copy of the first Medical Education Operations exam, notecards of teachers’ and staff’s wishes for the future, and more.
OCOM will open the time capsule again in 25 years.
“I hope people see the same exact sense of hope we have,” Griswold said. “We did take a gamble in coming here. We saw this vision and the value in it. I hope there’s an immense population of people who want to be DOs (doctors of osteopathic medicine) and can just commit to the school and enjoy it.”
Dr. Robert Hasty, the dean and chief academic officer for OCOM, said 2025 is an exciting time for OCOM as the teachers and staff work to train the next generation of physicians.
“This moment really kind of encapsulates the beginning of our dream, which is to create this beautiful medical school, this incredible team, and we put our aspirations in the time capsule so when we come back in 2025 years, we’ll be able to look and appreciate all we’ve accomplished by then,” Hasty said.
Kenneth Quezada, the inaugural class president, described the first OCOM class as ambitious.
In one semester, the class has established 30 clubs and organizations. Of the 97 students in the class, 22 have been published. And the class even managed to get a pingpong table in the student lounge, an accomplishment met with a few quiet cheers in the audience at the ceremony.
“I believe we will continue to push ourselves to reach our fullest potential,” Quezada said. “Let this time capsule serve as a promise — a promise that OCOM will build a legacy of ambitious and compassionate physicians who will innovate, lead and transform the health care landscape for generations to come.”
The time capsule was an opportunity for teachers, students and staff to capture what OCOM was like in its founding year.
Ledio Gjunkshi, class vice president, said the time capsule signifies who they are and who they hope to become.
“As the inaugural class of the Orlando College of Osteopathic Medicine, we stand at the threshold of possibility,” Gjunkshi said. “We are unique, blended pioneers and visionaries, not only shaping our own journeys but also laying the foundation for generations of medical students who will walk these halls afterwards. Inside this capsule lies a snapshot of 2025, a time of innovation, resilience and discovery. These items represent the challenges we’ve overcome, the lessons we’ve learned and the unity we foster.”
Campbell came from Kansas City, Missouri, to attend OCOM. She chose the school in part because it was new, and she wanted to be a part of starting something bigger than her.
Campbell and Griswold said the school has fostered an environment of care and support among teachers, staff and students. The teachers and staff push the students to be the best people and physicians they can be.
Each faculty, staff and board member wrote their goals and aspirations for the school over the next 25 years on an index card to be placed in the time capsule. Hasty said the dream is to turn OCOM into a “world-class health professional university,” so reading the notecards was inspiring.
Gjunkshi said being a part of the inaugural class is inspiring, and he knows by 2050, there will be OCOM physicians practicing throughout the country.
“The OCOM name will be known for years to come,” he said.
When the time capsule is opened, Quezada said he hopes the school will have retained its positivity and supportive culture and the optimism that came with a new medical school. He hopes the desire for learning is as strong as it is now.
No matter the changes in technology and progression in medicine, Gjunkshi hopes OCOM students and future physicians continue to embody the school’s mission, values and osteopathic spirit of “humility and treating people as people.”