Banner Health President and CEO Peter Fine
Banner Health President and CEO Peter Fine

Keynote Speaker for Commencement Named

Marian Frank
Marian Frank
Banner Health President and CEO Peter Fine
Banner Health President and CEO Peter Fine
Sixty-Eight Students to Receive Medical Degrees on May 6

Banner Health President and CEO Peter Fine will deliver the commencement speech at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix Class of 2019 commencement ceremony Monday, May 6.

This year’s commencement will begin at 3:30 p.m., at the Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams St., Phoenix.

Graduation marks the completion of the students’ medical school journey, where they are formally awarded their doctor of medicine degrees, signaling the beginning of the next stage of their careers.

“Peter Fine has a unique perspective on medicine that will be valuable to our graduating students as they begin the next step of their training as resident physicians,” said UA College of Medicine – Phoenix Dean Guy Reed, MD, MS.

“This graduation will celebrate the hard work, dedication and achievements of the College of Medicine Class of 2019,” Dean Reed said. “Over the course of the next 40 years or so of their careers, we know that they will make a difference in hundreds of thousands of lives in our community through skilled, compassionate care, innovation and leadership.”

Fine has led Banner through a significant transformation since he was named to lead Arizona’s largest health-care system in 2000.

Banner Health is one of the largest secular, non-profit health-care systems in the country. It employs more than 50,000 people and operates 28 hospitals in six states. The organization has expanded by opening urgent care centers, entered into partnerships in medical imaging and rehabilitation and plans to open a 120-bed hospital in Chandler in 2020.

Under Fine’s direction, Banner negotiated a 30-year academic affiliation agreement with the University of Arizona. The agreement included a $1.2 billion investment in capital projects and support for clinical enterprises at the University of Arizona Health Sciences.

Fine received his bachelor’s degree from Ohio University and a master’s degree in health care administration from George Washington University. He is a fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and previously served as a member of their Board of Governors.

*Photo Courtesy of: Shavon Rose, AZ Big Media

About the College

Founded in 2007, the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix inspires and trains exemplary physicians, scientists and leaders to optimize health and health care in Arizona and beyond. By cultivating collaborative research locally and globally, the college accelerates discovery in a number of critical areas — including cancer, stroke, traumatic brain injury and cardiovascular disease. Championed as a student-centric campus, the college has graduated more than 800 physicians, all of whom received exceptional training from nine clinical partners and more than 2,700 diverse faculty members. As the anchor to the Phoenix Bioscience Core, which is projected to have an economic impact of $3.1 billion by 2025, the college prides itself on engaging with the community, fostering education, inclusion, access and advocacy.