May 13, 2020 – SPRINGFIELD - Seventy new physicians and a graduate student at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine achieved degrees Saturday, May 16, in the school’s virtual celebration of commencement ( view the ceremony here ). The event was doubly historic: The Class of 2020 included the medical school’s 3,000 th graduate during its 50 th anniversary year. Following COVID-19 safety protocols, the School of Medicine announced its graduates via video on its Facebook page ( facebook.com/siumed.edu ). SIU School of Medicine Dean and Provost Jerry Kruse, MD, MSPH, welcomed the