When Parker College of Chiropractic appointed Fabrizio Mancini president at age 33, one of the youngest presidents of any higher learning institution in the country ever, his first act was to survey fellow Parker alumni.

“How could your education at Parker have been better,” he asked. The answers generally fell into three categories:

• The science of chiropractic was overemphasized and needs to be better integrated into the philosophy of chiropractic — it was the philosophy that first attracted the student to be a chiropractor;

• Parker needs increased practical business education and training; and

• More hands-on clinical experience to better prepare the student for the real world of chiropractic.

During the last 10 years, Dr. Mancini, staff, and faculty have collected student and alumni input and used it to re-engineer the academic curriculum and training to thoroughly integrate it into the Parker education.

In the last decade, Dallas-based Parker has emerged as one of the more renowned chiropractic education institutions in the country; even though it first opened its doors in 1982 — some 85 years after Dr. B.J. Palmer established the first chiropractic educational institution in Davenport, Iowa.

Parker also has emerged as one of the more financially sound chiropractic colleges in the country, with Dr. Mancini gaining acclaim as a leading educator and proponent of chiropractic worldwide.

The world needs love

The first thing you notice about Dr. Fabrizio “Fab” Mancini — “Fab” is short for “fabulous” as his admirers are quick to point out — is his smile. It is ear to ear and joyous. The second thing is the hug. He wraps his arms around you with real affection before saying, “I love you.”

This infectious quality personifies the philosophy of chiropractic first established by the college’s founder, Dr. James “Dr. Jim” Parker, and most effectively integrated into Parker’s educational program by Dr. Mancini.

“Parker College is a leading advocate of chiropractic wellness — a set of values and behaviors that promote physical, mental, and spiritual well-being that enhance the length and quality of life,” says Dr. Mancini.

“Scan the shelves at any pharmacy and you’re likely to find hundreds of pills promising to cure your sickness. Then look at the state of health in the United States and you’ll see that those pills aren’t making anyone well. People are taking more medication today than at any other time in history, but ironically are the unhealthiest they’ve ever been. The truth is that health doesn’t come with a prescription.

“The body is designed to be self-healing and health-regulating on all three levels — body, mind, and soul,” continues Dr. Mancini. “At Parker, we teach that the body is controlled by a master system — the nervous system. Everyday wear-and-tear on your body can create slight misalignments in your spine. Since the spine affects nerves in all parts of the body, adjusting to ‘unlock’ misplaced vertebrae usually restores normal flow of nerve energy and assists the body back into its normal healthy state.”

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