On Tuesday, March 6, the Class of 2018 unveiled the new Peace and Reflection Room during a dedication ceremony in Gatch Hall room 600. The creation of the room was a passion project of four fourth-year medical students — Savannah Kimball, Ronit Patnaik, Melanie Wiseman and Huiam Mubarak. These students shared why they spearheaded the creation of the space and how they hope it will serve future generations of medical students.
How did the Peace and Reflection Room come to be?
The Class of 2018 was inspired to leave a legacy that would shine a light on the importance of diversity and reflection. After the loss of a dear classmate in 2016 who lived out her faith and embraced her background, we were inspired to honor her and create a space for students to reflect and find some peace. At first it seemed like there was no space for a room such as this. Thankfully, Dr. Emily Walvoord was determined to help make this idea a reality.
The Peace and Reflection room wouldn’t have been possible without the support of IU School of Medicine’s Medical Student Education team, the hard work and dedication of students and – especially – the volunteered time put forth by Beth Watson, Director of Spiritual Care and Chaplaincy Services at IU Health. We hope that this room will serve as a space that is peaceful and provides students an opportunity to reflect. We are excited to open it up and support students in this way for many years to come.
– Savannah Kimball, Huiam Mubarak, Ronit Patnaik, Melanie Wiseman
Why did you want to create the Peace and Reflection Room?
“The Peace and Reflection Room is a gift from the Class of 2018 to future generations of IU medical students. It’s our way of paying it forward because we want all students at IU School of Medicine to feel supported and to have a space to relax and reflect during their time here. A spiritually and physical healthy medical student population leads to a healthy workforce and better care for our patients.” – Ronit Patnaik
“The room is needed so that students know that their mental and spiritual wellbeing is important. I hope that they find inspiration in words left behind by others, and be able to reflect on their own journey. I am grateful that my classmates are so kind and want to leave this type of legacy behind of self care. I am sure that the future students will only make this space better as time goes on. I hope that this space encourages understanding of different cultures and backgrounds of all students.” – Huiam Mubarak
“This space is a wonderful opportunity to keep medicine human. I have found it extremely useful to reflect while in medical school, and I hope others will find this room as an added opportunity to take more time for themselves. The room was inspired by a beautiful soul and we hope that spirit lives on at IUSM.” – Savannah Kimball
“The hope is that this room will help current IU School of Medicine students and those in the years to come by providing them with a peaceful and relaxing environment for them to pray or reflect. The room was inspired by a classmate and friend who strongly believed in providing love and acceptance to all. We wanted to honor and remember this by creating a room that will forever be available to IU School of Medicine students.” – Melanie Wiseman
How do you hope the Peace and Reflection Room will serve medical students?
“The Peace and Reflection Room is a space where students can fully be themselves. If they identify with a certain religion, they can practice it; if they need a space to escape, they can let their mind wander; if they just need to look at something beautiful, the room is for that too.” – Savannah Kimball
“The Peace and Reflection Room will provide students a safe space to reflect, pray & meditate.” – Ronit Patnaik
“The Peace & Reflection room is a private area for IUSM students to have to practice relaxation and mindfulness. The Peace & Reflection room can serve as a place to pray, meditate, or be silent and reflect.” – Melanie Wiseman
“This is a place where students can take time away from the daily stressors of medical school and find peace. This is a space for students dedicated to them from their peers.” – Huiam Mubara
Join the Class of 2018 for the dedication of the Peace and Reflection Room
The space was unveiled during an open house from 4 – 6 pm, Tuesday, March 6, in Gatch Hall room 600. A dedication by the Class of 2018, Dean Hess and others took place at 5 pm.
