The Wilkes-Hahnemann Cooperative Medical Education Program, 1968-1989
Collection
Identifier: 05-07-001
Scope and Content Note:
The Wilkes-Hahnemann Collection contains a variety of materials including budgets, business proposals, copies of federal laws, handwritten notes, meeting minutes, programs, proposed curriculums, publications, and a photo of the graduating class of 1978. The collection is dated from 1968 to 1989, however the majority of the materials presented are from around the early 1970s, especially 1971 and 1972. The general scope of the collection is composed of documents detailing the thought processes, ideas, goals, proposed program details, and requests of those involved in the creation of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program and the program’s coverage in the public eye; those involved had their ideas expressed both through publications and correspondences among others related to the program. Materials predating the start of the Program in 1972 detail the process of establishing, advocating for, and securing funding for the proposed program, whereas the material postdating the the end of the program in 1988 commemorates its history and impact on the local community.
Important figures involved in the collection include:
-Dr. Wilbur W. Oaks, Hahnemann Medical College’s professor of Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine -Dr. Ralph Rozelle, the Graduate Division Chairman for Wilkes College -Dr. Francis J. Michelini, Wilkes College’s president, -Dr. Eugene S. Farley, Wilkes College’s chancellor -Howard Corning Jr., Executive Director of the NFME -Kenneth M. Endicott, Director of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare -Dr. Frederick deW. Bolman of the Esso Education Foundation of New York City -James Bolden of the Pennsylvania Department of Education -Dr. Frederick K. Miller of the Pennsylvania Department of Education -Dr. W. Deming Lewis of Lehigh University -Dr. Alfred Gelhorn, Dean of the College of Medicine for the University of Pennsylvania, -Honorable Max Rosenn of the U.S. court of appeals of Wilkes-Barre -Douglas C. Geary, Hahnemann Medical College’s Vice President for Development, -Edward Wharton Shober; President of Hanemann Medical College
Important figures involved in the collection include:
-Dr. Wilbur W. Oaks, Hahnemann Medical College’s professor of Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine -Dr. Ralph Rozelle, the Graduate Division Chairman for Wilkes College -Dr. Francis J. Michelini, Wilkes College’s president, -Dr. Eugene S. Farley, Wilkes College’s chancellor -Howard Corning Jr., Executive Director of the NFME -Kenneth M. Endicott, Director of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare -Dr. Frederick deW. Bolman of the Esso Education Foundation of New York City -James Bolden of the Pennsylvania Department of Education -Dr. Frederick K. Miller of the Pennsylvania Department of Education -Dr. W. Deming Lewis of Lehigh University -Dr. Alfred Gelhorn, Dean of the College of Medicine for the University of Pennsylvania, -Honorable Max Rosenn of the U.S. court of appeals of Wilkes-Barre -Douglas C. Geary, Hahnemann Medical College’s Vice President for Development, -Edward Wharton Shober; President of Hanemann Medical College
Dates
- 1968-1989
Access:
Open for research.
Extent
2 boxes
Language of Materials
English
Condition:
Most papers are in fine condition. Some carbon copied letters or memorandums have become extremely fragile over time. Some newspapers are aged and easy to tear. Many papers are stained by iron-based paperclips or staples which have left rust. Handle all materials that appear fragile or easily-damaged with care.
Provenance:
It is unknown who owned these materials originally, but highly probable that they derived from one of the president’s office administrative records: Eugene Shedden Farley’s administration papers, Francis J. Michelini’s papers, Robert S. Capin’s administration records, or Christopher N. Breiseth’s papers as the materials fall during all four president’s tenures. Some of the materials have labels on the top right corner indicating they belonged to the “president’s office.” Given the nature of the materials, it would have likely been someone from administration or faculty who transferred these materials over to the library and archives at some point, however, there is no clear indication of when or from whom. These materials were found by current university archivist, Suzanna Calev, on a shelf in the archives and basic processed before being collection-level processed by a trained work-study student in Fall 2025.
Acquisition:
It is unknown when these materials were transferred to the Wilkes University Archives, it is possible that it was transferred over with Farley administration papers at some point during Harold Cox’s tenure as University Archivist.
Copyright
Wilkes University retains copyright of materials.
Historical Sketch of Wilkes-Hahnemann Program:
The Wilkes-Hahnemann medical program was established in 1972 and ran until 1988 as a collaboration between the then Wilkes College and Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital in Philadelphia. The goal of the program was to produce doctors specializing in family medicine with a M.D. in six years of study compared to the usual eight years required to acquire the medical degree; this was in response to a growing need for family medicine specialists in the greater Northeastern Pennsylvania area, especially within Hazleton, Wilkes-Barre, and Scranton. Also, in 1951, the federal government’s creation of the National Fund for Medical Education (hereon abbreviated as NFME) allowed for the creation of this program as funding was available for any program in the nation that displayed a need and a purpose for the money.
The United States as a whole’s secondary education community had been aware for some time that there was a severe lack of physicians in many parts of the country. One proposed solution was the creation of more two-year programs, instead of four-year programs, to begin a student's career as a medical student, theoretically reducing the time required to acquire a degree from eight to six and limiting the amount of funds and time required to create new curricula or reform old ones. The presence of an article from 1968 discussing these topics in the collection suggests that the founders of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program had been brainstorming its creation for some time and used the article as a basis for the program’s existence. A similar publication found within the archives as well, discusses the passing of Pennsylvania Public Law 89-749, which dictates that “the fulfillment of our national purpose depends on promoting and assuring the highest level of health attainable for every person.” The best method of achieving this goal, the publication continues, is to focus on comprehensive health planning; the goal is to have every sector of society, clinical or otherwise, involved in the planning and implementation of health policy, and importantly, health education. Again, because of the presence of this pamphlet in the archives, one must assume that these ideas of connected health education and implementation were in the mind of the founders of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program for some time. Many local figures from both the Wilkes-Barre and Philadelphia areas were directly responsible for the development of the Wilkes-Hahnemann Program, including Joseph DiPalma; Hahnemann Medical College’s Dean, Dr. Wilbur W. Oaks; Hahnemann Medical College’s professor of Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine, Dr. Ralph Rozelle; the Graduate Division Chairman for Wilkes College, Dr. Francis J. Michelini; Wilkes College’s president, Dr. Eugene S. Farley; Wilkes College’s chancellor, and Daniel J. Flood, the congressman for the district situated in Wilkes-Barre. Others involved in the founding of the program include Harry W. Bruce; the Director of the division of Physician and Health Profession Education for the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Howard Corning Jr.; Executive Director of the NFME, Marvin R. Dunn; Associate Director of the Division of Physician and Health Profession Education for the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Kenneth M. Endicott; Director of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Ben Badman, David Kistler, Lester Saidman, Dr. Frederick deW. Bolman of the Esso Education Foundation of New York City, James Bolden of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Dr. Frederick K. Miller of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Dr. W. Deming Lewis of Lehigh University, Dr. Alfred Gelhorn; Dean of the College of Medicine for the University of Pennsylvania, Honorable Max Rosenn of the U.S. court of appeals of Wilkes-Barre, Douglas C. Geary; Hahnemann Medical College’s Vice President for Development, Edward Wharton Shober; President of Hahnemann Medical College, John H. Moyer; Chairman of Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital Department of Medicine, and Sidney P. Marland; Commissioner of Education for the federal government.
To achieve this goal of having students acquire an M.D. in six years instead of eight, students would be placed on a fast track of classes for two years at Wilkes, then two years of classes at Hahnemann Medical College, then finally two years of practice within regional facilities. Students would take part in three “cores” during their study at Wilkes and Hahnemann: Core I focused on the theory behind medical science, and taught Anatomy, Biochemistry, Clinical Science, etc.; Core II taught the practice of medicine and its practical application, including classes focusing on Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Surgery, etc.; Finally, Core III taught a "’disease oriented’ approach” to understanding and addressing medical issues through critical thinking and problem solving, featuring topics in Hematology and Immunology, Human Sexuality, Metabolism and Endocrinology, etc. Once these topics were covered in the first four years, students would then be assigned to a primary care physician in either a private medical practice or a hospital who would mentor them in their practice and management of family medicine. Students would also be exposed to real-world scenarios including interacting with patients and real surgeries; all of this would occur under the supervision of Hahnemann faculty.
The Wilkes-Hahnemann Program brought one important technological development to the area as well; General Electric promised a grant during the program’s founding to fund a telediagnostics system to be used in the area.
The founding of the Wilkes-Hahnemann Program was not easy. The first immediate roadblock to Wilkes’ first president and eventually Chancellor, Eugene Shedden Farley, and President Francis Michelini, Wilkes 2nd president from 1970-1975, for the program was the NFME’s resistance to providing funding. In letter 2.13 in series III of the collection, Corning stated to Farley, lamentingly, that funding would only be provided to “an established medical school,” excluding the Wilkes-Hahnemann program and classifying Wilkes College as a non-medical school in the process. However, this conflict actually stemmed from a misunderstanding in the communications between the two. Farley, in his previous correspondences, had not been seeking out funding for Wilkes, but rather the Hahnemann side of the program, which was officially recognized as an established medical school by the NFME. Once this conflict was resolved, all Farley had to do to secure the funding was to have Hahnemann itself request the funding, not Wilkes College. Secondly, within the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area there were many local doctors and medical professionals who were opposed to the development of the medical program, because, according to Joseph Bellucci, former chair of Computer Science at Wilkes, they believed the program would “dumb down” the average physician in the area due to the shortened length of the program. There were also concerns regarding the maturity of the graduating doctor, as they would be twenty-four and not twenty-six upon completion of the requirements for their degree on average. Finally, locals were concerned that Hahnemann would try to “take over” the region by establishing its control over part of the program. Some faculty at Wilkes College opposed the program, possibly fearing a reduction in attention and funding for their departments as it could potentially be diverted to the newest Wilkes-Hahnemann program. In the end, most of these grievances were resolved. After meeting with those that opposed the program’s creation and convincing them that the physician shortage crisis in Northeastern Pennsylvania was too great to overlook, most of the grassroots opposition to the program disappeared. Finally, Farley and his compatriots would have to secure funding from other federal and state sources, most notably the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare of the federal government (now split into the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services) and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In this regard, Farley’s acquaintanceship with Flood was most beneficial for the program. Farley and Flood, in their correspondence, demonstrated a unique sense of closeness in their joking remarks and salutation, addressing one another with “Hail Herod! And the King!!!” in their letters. Flood, a member of the House Appropriations Committee and a notorious arm-twister, would immediately spring into action, securing funds for the Wilkes-Hahnemann program as soon as Farley educated him as to the program’s stipulations and purposes, demonstrating his key role in the future of the program Farley had dreamed up. His first immediate act was to convince Marland to provide an upwards of $150,000 to fund the beginnings of the program. He would go on to steer the House Appropriations committee towards the necessary bills that would provide funding as it was needed. Flood, throughout the entire process, showed a keen interest in the success of the Wilkes-Hahenmann program, stating in letter 2.41 in series III of the collection that he was “tremendously interested in this proposal.” Farley would also seek out funding from the Esso Education Foundation out of New York City to supplement some of the final costs needed to establish the program. In the process of establishing the program, donations and grants from a variety of sources would come to a total of $80 million, including money set aside for the construction of a learning center and a multitude of facilities on Wilkes campus.
The Wilkes-Hahnemann Program would end in 1988, having produced ten graduating classes of fast-tracked students with M.D.s ready to tackle the medical issues of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Though no explicit reason was ever stated for the program’s closure, it's possible that the money necessary for the program, from any source, became unavailable. At the same time, one has to consider if the “bad guys” stated beforehand still voiced their concerns throughout the existence of the program to the point to such an extent that the program’s future became uncertain to force its closure. Also, now that the physician shortage had been addressed, there was less of an exigence for students to pursue a six year program versus the many eight year programs Wilkes offered with schools like Thomas Jefferson University if they wished to pursue an M.D. The Wilkes-Hahnemann program’s legacy was both close and far-reaching. Hahnemann Medical College would go on to form similar programs with Lehigh University and Gannon College (now Gannon University), using Wilkes’ ideas as a foundation for their respective programs. Farley, Michelini, Rozelle, Flood, and the members of Hahnemann Medical College were all lauded as saviors for the region and its medical community after the fact. Northeastern Pennsylvania would never report another physician shortage after the introduction of so many young doctors into the field by the program. Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital, despite its prestige, would be forced to close in 2019 due to financial troubles.
The United States as a whole’s secondary education community had been aware for some time that there was a severe lack of physicians in many parts of the country. One proposed solution was the creation of more two-year programs, instead of four-year programs, to begin a student's career as a medical student, theoretically reducing the time required to acquire a degree from eight to six and limiting the amount of funds and time required to create new curricula or reform old ones. The presence of an article from 1968 discussing these topics in the collection suggests that the founders of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program had been brainstorming its creation for some time and used the article as a basis for the program’s existence. A similar publication found within the archives as well, discusses the passing of Pennsylvania Public Law 89-749, which dictates that “the fulfillment of our national purpose depends on promoting and assuring the highest level of health attainable for every person.” The best method of achieving this goal, the publication continues, is to focus on comprehensive health planning; the goal is to have every sector of society, clinical or otherwise, involved in the planning and implementation of health policy, and importantly, health education. Again, because of the presence of this pamphlet in the archives, one must assume that these ideas of connected health education and implementation were in the mind of the founders of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program for some time. Many local figures from both the Wilkes-Barre and Philadelphia areas were directly responsible for the development of the Wilkes-Hahnemann Program, including Joseph DiPalma; Hahnemann Medical College’s Dean, Dr. Wilbur W. Oaks; Hahnemann Medical College’s professor of Medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine, Dr. Ralph Rozelle; the Graduate Division Chairman for Wilkes College, Dr. Francis J. Michelini; Wilkes College’s president, Dr. Eugene S. Farley; Wilkes College’s chancellor, and Daniel J. Flood, the congressman for the district situated in Wilkes-Barre. Others involved in the founding of the program include Harry W. Bruce; the Director of the division of Physician and Health Profession Education for the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Howard Corning Jr.; Executive Director of the NFME, Marvin R. Dunn; Associate Director of the Division of Physician and Health Profession Education for the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Kenneth M. Endicott; Director of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Ben Badman, David Kistler, Lester Saidman, Dr. Frederick deW. Bolman of the Esso Education Foundation of New York City, James Bolden of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Dr. Frederick K. Miller of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Dr. W. Deming Lewis of Lehigh University, Dr. Alfred Gelhorn; Dean of the College of Medicine for the University of Pennsylvania, Honorable Max Rosenn of the U.S. court of appeals of Wilkes-Barre, Douglas C. Geary; Hahnemann Medical College’s Vice President for Development, Edward Wharton Shober; President of Hahnemann Medical College, John H. Moyer; Chairman of Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital Department of Medicine, and Sidney P. Marland; Commissioner of Education for the federal government.
To achieve this goal of having students acquire an M.D. in six years instead of eight, students would be placed on a fast track of classes for two years at Wilkes, then two years of classes at Hahnemann Medical College, then finally two years of practice within regional facilities. Students would take part in three “cores” during their study at Wilkes and Hahnemann: Core I focused on the theory behind medical science, and taught Anatomy, Biochemistry, Clinical Science, etc.; Core II taught the practice of medicine and its practical application, including classes focusing on Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Surgery, etc.; Finally, Core III taught a "’disease oriented’ approach” to understanding and addressing medical issues through critical thinking and problem solving, featuring topics in Hematology and Immunology, Human Sexuality, Metabolism and Endocrinology, etc. Once these topics were covered in the first four years, students would then be assigned to a primary care physician in either a private medical practice or a hospital who would mentor them in their practice and management of family medicine. Students would also be exposed to real-world scenarios including interacting with patients and real surgeries; all of this would occur under the supervision of Hahnemann faculty.
The Wilkes-Hahnemann Program brought one important technological development to the area as well; General Electric promised a grant during the program’s founding to fund a telediagnostics system to be used in the area.
The founding of the Wilkes-Hahnemann Program was not easy. The first immediate roadblock to Wilkes’ first president and eventually Chancellor, Eugene Shedden Farley, and President Francis Michelini, Wilkes 2nd president from 1970-1975, for the program was the NFME’s resistance to providing funding. In letter 2.13 in series III of the collection, Corning stated to Farley, lamentingly, that funding would only be provided to “an established medical school,” excluding the Wilkes-Hahnemann program and classifying Wilkes College as a non-medical school in the process. However, this conflict actually stemmed from a misunderstanding in the communications between the two. Farley, in his previous correspondences, had not been seeking out funding for Wilkes, but rather the Hahnemann side of the program, which was officially recognized as an established medical school by the NFME. Once this conflict was resolved, all Farley had to do to secure the funding was to have Hahnemann itself request the funding, not Wilkes College. Secondly, within the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area there were many local doctors and medical professionals who were opposed to the development of the medical program, because, according to Joseph Bellucci, former chair of Computer Science at Wilkes, they believed the program would “dumb down” the average physician in the area due to the shortened length of the program. There were also concerns regarding the maturity of the graduating doctor, as they would be twenty-four and not twenty-six upon completion of the requirements for their degree on average. Finally, locals were concerned that Hahnemann would try to “take over” the region by establishing its control over part of the program. Some faculty at Wilkes College opposed the program, possibly fearing a reduction in attention and funding for their departments as it could potentially be diverted to the newest Wilkes-Hahnemann program. In the end, most of these grievances were resolved. After meeting with those that opposed the program’s creation and convincing them that the physician shortage crisis in Northeastern Pennsylvania was too great to overlook, most of the grassroots opposition to the program disappeared. Finally, Farley and his compatriots would have to secure funding from other federal and state sources, most notably the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare of the federal government (now split into the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services) and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In this regard, Farley’s acquaintanceship with Flood was most beneficial for the program. Farley and Flood, in their correspondence, demonstrated a unique sense of closeness in their joking remarks and salutation, addressing one another with “Hail Herod! And the King!!!” in their letters. Flood, a member of the House Appropriations Committee and a notorious arm-twister, would immediately spring into action, securing funds for the Wilkes-Hahnemann program as soon as Farley educated him as to the program’s stipulations and purposes, demonstrating his key role in the future of the program Farley had dreamed up. His first immediate act was to convince Marland to provide an upwards of $150,000 to fund the beginnings of the program. He would go on to steer the House Appropriations committee towards the necessary bills that would provide funding as it was needed. Flood, throughout the entire process, showed a keen interest in the success of the Wilkes-Hahenmann program, stating in letter 2.41 in series III of the collection that he was “tremendously interested in this proposal.” Farley would also seek out funding from the Esso Education Foundation out of New York City to supplement some of the final costs needed to establish the program. In the process of establishing the program, donations and grants from a variety of sources would come to a total of $80 million, including money set aside for the construction of a learning center and a multitude of facilities on Wilkes campus.
The Wilkes-Hahnemann Program would end in 1988, having produced ten graduating classes of fast-tracked students with M.D.s ready to tackle the medical issues of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Though no explicit reason was ever stated for the program’s closure, it's possible that the money necessary for the program, from any source, became unavailable. At the same time, one has to consider if the “bad guys” stated beforehand still voiced their concerns throughout the existence of the program to the point to such an extent that the program’s future became uncertain to force its closure. Also, now that the physician shortage had been addressed, there was less of an exigence for students to pursue a six year program versus the many eight year programs Wilkes offered with schools like Thomas Jefferson University if they wished to pursue an M.D. The Wilkes-Hahnemann program’s legacy was both close and far-reaching. Hahnemann Medical College would go on to form similar programs with Lehigh University and Gannon College (now Gannon University), using Wilkes’ ideas as a foundation for their respective programs. Farley, Michelini, Rozelle, Flood, and the members of Hahnemann Medical College were all lauded as saviors for the region and its medical community after the fact. Northeastern Pennsylvania would never report another physician shortage after the introduction of so many young doctors into the field by the program. Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital, despite its prestige, would be forced to close in 2019 due to financial troubles.
References
THE NATIONAL FUND FOR MEDICAL EDUCATION AND THE AMERICAN MEDICAL EDUCATION FOUNDATION. (1951). Federation Bulletin (Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States), 37(6), 177–182. Accessed November 10, 2025 http://www.jstor.org/stable/45460614
Grey House Publishing (Ed.). (2017). flood, Daniel john (1903–1994). In Political Corruption in America: An Encyclopedia of Scandals, Power & Greed (3rd ed.). Grey House Publishing. Accessed November 10, 2025 https://search.credoreference.com/articles/Qm9va0FydGljbGU6NDQ4MDM0OA==?aid=14720
Sidney P. Marland, Jr. (1914-1992).. (n.d.) >The Free Library. (2014). Retrieved Nov 10 2025 from https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Sidney+P.+Marland%2c+Jr.+(1914-1992).-a0211554837
Eates, T. (2019, August 12). Hahnemann Closure: The Worst GME Debacle in U.S. History. Emra.org. Accessed November 7, 2025 https://www.emra.org/emresident/article/hahnemann-closure/
Series I; Administrative Materials, 1968-1978:
Series I; Administrative Materials, 1968-1978 is arranged alphabetically by name of the type of medium, then by chronological order within the medium type and contains documents produced by the faculty of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program detailing certain aspects of the curricula of the medical program, documentation of the required funding for the program, proposals regarding the financial and academic requirements of the program, laws passed by the federal governments regarding public health, a game plan for convincing local figures in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area of the validity of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program, and other details regarding the creation and continuation of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program.
Series II; PR for the Program, 1971-1989:
Series II; PR for the Program, 1971-1989 is arranged chronologically from earliest date to latest date and contains publications and public releases of texts describing and lauding the Wilkes-Hahnemann program. Also contained within the series is a photo of the graduating class of 1978 which includes important figures including Robert S. Capin (The third president of Wilkes College), Dr. William Likoff (former president of Hahnemann Medical College), Dr. Joseph DiPalma; Hahnemann Medical College’s Dean, and Senator Daniel Flood, taken at Irem Temple Country Club in Dallas, PA.
Series III; Correspondence, 1971
Series III; Correspondence, 1971, is arranged alphabetically by the last name of the author of a given entry, then by chronological order and contains correspondences all from 1971 exchanged by a multitude of figures involved in the formation of the Wilkes-Hahnemann program amongst each other. The most commonly seen name in the series is Eugene Shedden Farley, Wilkes first college president, who was heavily responsible for spearheading the program and acquiring funding. Individuals seen in the series came from many different organizations, including the NFME, Wilkes College, Hahnemann Medical College and Hospital, the federal Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Esso Education Foundation, and the Wilkes-Barre board of Economic Development, among other local and nationwide groups.
Processed By:
Michael Peterson, Archives work-study, Fall 2025, edited and supervised by Suzanna Calev, University Archivist, Fall 2025.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Code for uncoded script
Repository Details
Part of the Wilkes University Archives Repository
Contact:
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu
84 W South St.
Wilkes-Barre PA 18701 US
570-408-2000
570-408-7823 (Fax)
ask.archives@wilkes.edu