On May 15, trustees overseeing the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine (OCOM) voted to close the college after 41 years and enter into an agreement with the National University of Natural Medicine (NUNM) to teach OCOM’s third-year students for their final year of classes, offer first- and second-year students the option of a comprehensive credit transfer, and accept incoming OCOM students automatically. Trustees also voted to enter into an agreement with Five Branches University to accept OCOM’s doctor of acupuncture and oriental medicine students into the Five Branches doctor of acupuncture and herbal medicine program.
Fourth-year OCOM students will graduate Aug. 26, making them the last class to earn a degree from the college. OCOM offers master’s and doctoral degrees in a program that includes study in acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, therapeutic massage and qi cultivation, as well as a focus on collaboration with Western medicine practitioners.
School officials this week will submit their joint plans—known as teach out agreements—to the U.S. Department of Education, the Higher Education Coordinating Commission, the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine, and the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. If accreditors approve the plans, OCOM would no longer offer classes after September and instead current OCOM students would have the opportunity to continue their education with NUNM or Five Branches—or transfer to any school they choose that best suits their needs.
If approved by regulators, the arrangements would bring together two powerhouse names in Portland integrative medicine. Together, OCOM and NUNM have graduated thousands of acupuncturists and provided care to tens of thousands of Pacific Northwest patients in their Old Town and Lair Hill clinics.
“There’s a symmetry to these schools coming back together,” said Philip Lundberg, OCOM president and CEO. “We share history and many faculty members, as well as a steadfast commitment to research and community care.”
“As we mourn the tremendous loss of OCOM’s closure to our profession, I stand with unwavering commitment to welcoming their students and faculty and pledging to do everything in my power to sustain their mission and legacy,” added NUNM President and CEO Melanie Henriksen, ND, CNM. “Continuing OCOM’s tradition of excellence is the right thing to do for the profession of acupuncture and Chinese medicine. We will open our doors not only to OCOM students, but to the college’s faculty, staff and patient community.”
For more information, visit https://nunm.edu.
