West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine

The West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM) is a public, stand-alone osteopathic medical school located in Lewisburg, West Virginia. A part of the University of West Virginia since 1989, it is the only stand-alone professional school in West Virginia. WVSOM is noted for producing primary care physicians. It is the home of over 300 first- and second-year medical students. Over 1,600 students have graduated from WVSOM and practiced medicine in 46 US states and the District of Columbia.

History
The school was founded in 1974 as the Greenbrier College of Osteopathic Medicine, a private, non-profit institution. Its first class consisted of 36 students in 1974. It was taken over by the state in 1976 under its current name. The buildings and grounds of the medical school are the former grounds of the Greenbrier Military School, a private military boarding high school which existed from 1812 to 1972.

Initially, the school was controversial, as both West Virginia University and Marshall University had allopathic medical schools, and the need for three state-supported medical schools was questioned. However, a much higher percentage of WVSOM graduates remain in West Virginia following graduation than do graduates of either of the other schools. The school has risen to high ranking national prominence in rural medicine in addition to clinical medicine.