ON CAMPUS SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT


THE END OF


AN ERA Bill Meeker, D.C., M.P.H. (West, ’82), looks back at his time as president of Palmer West.


AFTER 39 YEARS in the profession, Palmer West President Bill Meeker, D.C., M.P.H. (West, ’82), retired in June 2021. His tenure at Palmer College has been


full of growth and accomplishments. After receiving his doctor of chiropractic degree from Palmer West, Dr. Meeker invested his time wholeheartedly in Palmer College. Over the course of his career, he spent 12 years as Palmer’s vice president for research and the director of the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research on Palmer’s main campus. He was appointed president of Palmer West in 2007. Over the years in this role, Dr. Meeker has one word to describe his favorite part of being campus president: students. “Seeing them start out in their first


quarter and then seeing them graduate in the 13th quarter — and then actually seeing them years later as they’ve developed successful practices and they’re doing well — is very fulfilling.” As a Palmer West graduate, Dr.


Meeker remembers what it felt like to be a student, and as he often reminisces, his best memory as a Palmer student was his classmates.


“I think it was the camaraderie of my


fellow students in so many ways. Getting to know them, socializing with them, studying with them, sweating through the challenges of getting through the program, which was really transformative, would be my best memory as a Palmer student.” Being in the chiropractic profession for nearly 40 years, Dr. Meeker has seen it evolve in so many ways. He is mindful about the many opportunities that have now become more available to chiropractors, compared to when he began his career. “The scientific credibility, public


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JOYFUL MEMORIES As campus president, Bill Meeker, D.C., M.P.H., says seeing the students through from the start of their time at Palmer to graduation was the most fulfilling part of the job.


“From when I started back in the late 1970s compared to now, the places that chiropractors can have a career and make a difference are much more diverse than they were.”


—Bill Meeker, D.C, M.P.H. (West ’82)


acceptance and expansion of the use of chiropractic has been phenomenal. From when I started back in the late 1970s compared to now, the places that chiropractors can have a career and make a difference are much more diverse than they were. There are so many opportunities now for graduates to get into practice — not just in private practice but in large-scale organizations and mainstream health delivery systems, corporate settings and the military. None of those things existed before.” With so many opportunities becoming more accessible for current students and recent graduates, Dr. Meeker shares what he feels is the biggest opportunity within chiropractic. “The biggest opportunity for chiropractic is to work collaboratively and


inter-professionally with other health-care providers in the patient’s best interest. If you put the patient at the center of your decision-making process and work with other health-care providers to give the best possible health care, those job opportunities are going to continue to grow. Individual private practice will never go away, but other opportunities are ramping up quickly. Chiropractic’s philosophy, approach to prevention, and creation of health are really at the forefront of what people are thinking about in health care these days. If we can get people to think about creating health rather than fixing disease, then we’re very well-positioned as a profession.” As Dr. Meeker wraps up his career, he has some advice for current students


and recent graduates. “Learn how to manage your time, learn how to prioritize your actions and make a practice of visualizing your future, because putting your intentions out there is the best way to make them come true. Focus on your path and on what you want. Make sure you understand what makes yourself tick. And really it’s then up to individual initiative and motivation.”


FALL 2021


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