Celebrating Veterans Day, TCOM announces fully funded scholarship for military veterans
On this Veterans Day, the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine is honored to announce a new fully funded veterans scholarship dedicated to those men and women who bravely served our nation. This scholarship will support first-year students who are veterans of any branch of the military pursuing their doctorate at TCOM.
“I am so grateful to those who have made this scholarship possible for our veterans who have served and protected our nation,” said Dr. Frank Filipetto, Dean of TCOM and Everett Endowed Professor. “We have so many veterans that are part of TCOM and this scholarship will enable us to provide them with support.”
The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth is designated as a Military- Friendly® School and TCOM is especially proud of the many veterans included among the members of its family.
Dr. Albert Yurvati, TCOM Class of ’86 and a veteran, made the lead gift to begin the campaign to fund the scholarship. A Vietnam-era veteran, Yurvati enlisted in the United States Army in 1973 after graduating high school. He spent three years in the Army and later joined the California National Guard Reserves while working on his undergraduate degree from California State University.
Yurvati began his second stint in the Army in 1982 as a commissioned officer. It was at that same time he arrived in Fort Worth and began his medical school career at TCOM.
Yurvati graduated from TCOM and continued to rise through the ranks of the military. He became a major before ending his military career in 1994 with an honorable discharge to begin a cardiothoracic residency. At that time, he started his second career as an osteopathic surgeon.
Current TCOM third-year student Jonathan Sweeney is a former U.S. Marine sergeant. He sees his job as a Marine and now soon-to-be doctor as the same, they are both there to serve and protect. Sweeney was a Marine sniper who left the military in 2014. He came to HSC in 2018 and studied in the Medical Science program at the School of Biomedical Sciences while also working in the anatomy lab.
“TCOM has been instrumental in providing aid and resources to me as a veteran,” Sweeney said. “This is evident by its desire to create opportunities to support veterans to better themselves through education. Financial assistance to those who have served is a tool that allows them to explore their passions and stay dedicated to a life of service.”
The Veterans Scholarship has received an additional anonymous donation of $20,000 from a member of TCOM’s Class of 1976. The alumni attended TCOM on the Health Professions Scholarship Program of the United States Air Force. He served nine years on active duty for the Air Force and completed his residency and fellowship during that time. He has practiced his specialty for the last 38 years.
To learn more about HSC’s designation as a Military-Friendly® School, the current veterans benefits the university offers or to support the veteran’s scholarship, please visit the website.
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