Rosenberger, now a surgical breast oncology fellow at New York’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, returned to 91����Ƶ on Feb. 5 to give a lecture about her medical career. She covered gallbladders, goiters, gunshots, gastroschisis and more as she shared cases with students, faculty, staff and community members.

“I think the greatest thing about medicine is you get to meet people where they are, sometimes when they’re really scared,” Rosenberger said.

Using a Powerpoint presentation filled with photos that were sometimes not for the squeamish, Rosenberger walked through some of the interesting cases spanning the spectrum of her residency at the University of Virginia Medical Center. That included her eventual specialty of breast cancer. One in every eight women will get breast cancer during their lifetime, she said, which makes the specialty especially impactful.

As images of enlarged thyroids, trauma wounds, gallstones, parastomal hernias and more flashed by on the screen, Rosenberger narrated each case with detail and precision.

“In medicine, you learn an entire new language, which takes many years,” she said.

Earlier, as Rosenberger began the lecture in Suter’s Room 106 auditorium, she recalled being in that same space a decade and a half earlier as a biology student. That included classes in physiology and anatomy with 91����Ƶ professor that “kick-started” her interest in surgery.

“It feels very funny to be on the other side of the podium,” Rosenberger said. “It feels like not that many years ago I sat in this lecture hall. I feel blessed to be standing here.”

Miller and Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement, welcomed Rosenberger back to 91����Ƶ at the start of the seminar. Shisler noted that the pole vault records Rosenberger set as a celebrated student-athlete still stood. Rosenberger was inducted into 91����Ƶ’s Athletics Hall of Honor in 2013.

“From the moment she set foot on 91����Ƶ’s campus in 1999, Dr. Laura Rosenberger has been soaring to great heights, both literally and figuratively,” Shisler said. He also congratulated her on the recent successful completion in Dallas, Texas, of her surgical boards and welcomed her parents in the audience, James L. Rosenberger ’68, 91����Ƶ’s Alumnus of the Year in 2015, and Gloria Horst ’70 Rosenberger.

Rosenberger said she will know soon where she will be headed after her one-year fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering is complete. She plans practice at an academic facility.

It has taken a long time to reach that goal, but Rosenberger encouraged the students in the audience who were planning on medical careers to stick with it.

“It’s a long road to a medical career—12 years of post-college education for me,” Rosenberger said. “But it’s worth the time. It’s a fantastic path.”

Rosenberger will be back at 91����Ƶ on Friday, Feb. 5, to present “Goiters, Gunshots and Gastroschisis: Tales from a Surgical Residency” for a . The seminar will begin at 4 p.m. in Suter Science Center Room 106, but guests are invited to come 15 minutes earlier for refreshments and to greet Rosenberger.

Her presentation will cover a broad spectrum of general surgery experiences, from the basic to the complex, including some of her own most memorable cases. She will also examine her journey through the field, looking at the compassion and commitment required and the rewards she finds in her work.

, director of 91����Ƶ’s program, says he is looking forward to hearing Rosenberger “share her experiences and challenges.”

“From a faculty perspective, it is delightful to see a gifted student continuing to demonstrate excellence and proficiency in her work as a surgeon,” Miller says.

After graduating from 91����Ƶ with a biology degree in 2003, Rosenberger went on to medical school at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and residency at the University of Virginia.

Originally from State College, Pa., Rosenberger has kept her Anabaptist values at the heart of her work. In January 2015 she provided a Grand Rounds lecture to colleagues at the UVA Medical Center titled “.” She highlighted Mennonite contributions to health care around the globe and noted the Mennonite conscientious objectors during World War II who served in mental hospitals through Civilian Public Service.

Rosenberger has made some sacrifices of her own to pursue her work in health care, too. After winning all six possible conference titles in indoor and outdoor pole vaulting and four national titles during her first three years at 91����Ƶ, she gave up sports during her senior year so that she could focus on academics and her preparation for medical school. She was inducted into the 91����Ƶ in 2013.

The seminar, co-sponsored by 91����Ƶ’s MA in Biomedicine program and the Office of Development, is open to the public.

Chappell-Dick completes an incredible indoor season with the race, earning All-American honors for the first time in her career.

Chappell-Dick led the pack in the early stages of the race, only to be passed by a pair of runners with a lap to go. Coming around the final curve, the junior made a move on the outside to slip back ahead of one of the women, earning her second-place finish. She was just 0.64 behind the gold medalist, senior Alison Maxwell of Middlebury. Chappell-Dick’s time was also a mere 0.44 off her ODAC record time of 4:56.37, which was run on Feb. 21 on the same JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N.C.

After Friday’s preliminaries, 91����Ƶ’s miler had the top time of the 17 participants, clocking at 5:01.22.

Chappell-Dick becomes Eastern Mennonite’s first All-American since men’s shot putter Nathan Turner in 2007. The top eight in an event earn All-American status. The last women’s All-American was Megan Mlinarchik in the pole vault in 2005. The silver medal at the national meet also gave Chappell-Dick the highest finish by a Royal since Hall of Honor member  was the runner-up in the indoor pole vault in 2002.  Rosenberger won four indoor and outdoor titles during her time and remains 91����Ƶ’s only National Champion in track & field.

During the indoor season, Chappell-Dick broke four 91����Ƶ records (800m, 1000m, mile and distance medley relay) and also took down the ODAC record for the mile.  She won three events at the ODAC Championships (800m, mile and DMR) and earlier this week was named the South/Southeast Region Athlete of the Year.

Eastern Mennonite’s outdoor season begins next weekend, with the W&L Carnival in Lexington on Friday and Saturday.