By Pam Morrison
On Sept. 22, 2023, the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons (ACOS) held their annual gathering in Chicago. Ray Morrison, DO, FACOS, VCOM-Louisiana’s founding dean, dean emeritus and associate vice president for college development and advancement for the Louisiana region, was named a distinguished fellow by ACOS President Kristen Conrad-Schnetz, DO, FACOS.
Dr. Morrison worked for 30 years as a general surgeon in Tyler and Crockett, Texas, and in Bedford, Virginia. He taught and mentored third- and fourth-year medical students from the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (TCOM) and family practice residents through the Texas A&M School of Medicine for more than a decade through TCOM’s Rural Osteopathic Medical Education (ROME) program. He also worked for five years at Liberty University College of Osteopathic Medicine as surgery chair, then associate dean for fourth-year students before coming to VCOM as founding dean for VCOM-Louisiana.
Dan Miulli, DO, FACOS, is a neurosurgeon in Riverside, California, who was also honored in September as ACOS’s Humanitarian Award recipient. Dr. Miulli said, “Dr. Morrison is amazing! He has been my rock since he was my chief resident over thirty years ago, fighting for me and fighting for our osteopathic medicine. His constant participation and stalwart dedication to improving opportunities and fairness for our students, residents and colleagues is only matched by his devotion to his family and our God. Our profession, and I, are honored to call Dr. Morrison our best friend and big buddy.”
Adam Smith, DO, DFACOS, is a bariatric surgeon in Fort Worth, Texas, who said, “To achieve the designation of distinguished fellow, one has to go above and beyond, with a longstanding history of contribution and service. This reward is reserved for a select few members who are already recognized as a fellow. I have known Dr. Morrison since we finished training. He has served numerous roles throughout our profession including but not limited to president of the American College of Osteopathic Surgeons, speaker of the House of Delegates of the American Osteopathic Association, and so many roles on committees, too numerous to recite here. Dr. Morrison is the epitome of what an osteopathic physician and surgeon should be.”