the fbi building

mwms is one of several "new" branch campus medical schools that are popping up around the country. basically, this means that a medical school (usually in another state), builds a campus in another location. the branch campuses pretty much run themselves (i.e. have a separate faculty, student body, admissions process, etc.). so why do these campuses exist? because it's easier to open a branch of an existing school than it is to create a new school from scratch, thanks to the complexity of licensing and accreditation laws. basically, this means that mwms's "campus" is really only consists of a shiny new building. for now, the clinics, hospitals, & affiliated stuff are all located elsewhere.

this also means that the community in which mwms is located has no idea that it has a medical school in its midst. or, at least, they didn't know at the beginning, when the school opened. apparently, that lady they pay the big bucks to come into our classes and take pictures of us is supposed to have gotten the word out that we exist and are here to help the community. (r-i-g-h-t....) mwms should be known by everyone around here, given that the area is not yet very large and that the school has been placing all sorts of ads everywhere, right?

ah, but then we have experiences like these:

recently, a classmate of mine was talking to one of his neighbors.

the neighbor asked "where do you go to medical school? i didn't know there were any medical schools around here."
"oh, i go to mwms," my classmate replied, "you know, in the building next door to the ymca?" "you mean you go to school in the fbi building?!?!?!"

*headdesk*