The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine, or LECOM, has officially received accreditation to expand and open a medical school at Elmira College.

The announcement was made Monday by LECOM President John Ferretti, Do.O. And Elmira College President Charles Lindsay, Ph.D.

The Elmira campus joins LECOM campuses in Erie and Greensburg, Pennsylvania and in Bradenton, Florida.

College officials say they expect to have the first Elmira medical students start in late July 2020, pending final approval by the New York Department of Education Board of Regents.

“LECOM is extending medical education to the Elmira College campus to attract students who will fill the need for physicians in the Southern Tier and Western New York,” according to Dr. Ferretti.

Medical school graduates often continue their post-graduate training and establish residency in the same area in which they attend medical school.
LECOM originally opened in Erie in 1993 and added the Florida campus in 2004 and the Greensburg campus in 2009. In addition to the College of Osteopathic Medicine, LECOM operates a School of Pharmacy, School of Dental Medicine and School of Health Services Administration. LECOM has more than 4100 students and the Elmira College location will increase enrollment by more than 400 students in a few years.

“Our relationship with the Elmira medical community and other affiliated hospitals in the region exposed LECOM students to quality training” said Richard Terry, D.O., MBA, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for LECOM at Elmira. “The affiliation demonstrated that LECOM could better serve the region by bringing all four years of medical education to Elmira.”