Zachary McDowell ’08, M.D. Set to Give Keynote Address at ESU’s Undergraduate Commencement Ceremonies

Zachary McDowell '08, M.D. will be the keynote speaker for East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania's two undergraduate commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 9 in Koehler Fieldhouse.

Dr. McDowell is a proud alumnus of East Stroudsburg University, where he graduated in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. During his time at ESU, he was a linebacker on the football team, earning a varsity letter while helping lead the Warriors to the Northeast Regional Championship and an appearance in the NCAA Division II national semifinals.

After graduating from ESU, Dr. McDowell went on to earn his Doctor of Medicine from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, completed a General Surgery Internship and Urology Residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and finished his training with a Fellowship in Minimally Invasive Surgery and Oncology at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, Washington.

Following four years in private practice in Phoenix, Arizona, Dr. McDowell made the deliberate choice to pursue academic medicine - driven by a passion for teaching the next generation of physicians. He currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Urology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, where he specializes in robotic surgery for urologic cancers and is dedicated to training the surgeons of tomorrow.

He is excited to return to where it all began to celebrate the graduating class, and to remind them that every great journey starts with a single step forward from a place just like ESU.

The ceremony awarding bachelor's degrees from ESU's College of Health Sciences and College of Business and Management will begin at 8:45 a.m. The ceremony awarding bachelor's degrees from ESU's College of Arts and Sciences and College of Education will begin at 1:45 p.m.