SHPEP’s roots go back to 1989 with its first cohort of scholars. Due to noted declines in medical school applicants from racial and ethnic backgrounds starting in 1977, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) initiated a study in 1984 to learn strategies to change the trends. Findings contributed to the development of the Minority Medical Education Program (MMEP) to increase the acceptance rates of medical school applicants from racial and ethnic minority groups who were underrepresented in medicine—African Americans, Mexican Americans, mainland Puerto Ricans, and American Indians/Alaska Natives.
Over the years, MMEP’s intensive academic preparation program expanded to 11 medical school campuses. The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) assumed the role of the National Program Office in 1993.
In 2003, the program changed its name to the Summer Medical Education Program (SMEP), reflecting the inclusion of students representing a range of economic, cultural, and geographic diversity. In 2006, the program expanded to include dentistry and was renamed the Summer Medical and Dental Education Program (SMDEP). This iteration of the program focused on students in the first two years of their college education because the experience of previous programs indicated that this is when students derive the most benefit.
In 2016, in an effort to keep apace of the growing importance of team-based care and interprofessional collaboration, RWJF expanded the program to include a range of health professions and changed the program name to the Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP).
Creating a Culture of Health
The Summer Health Professions Education Program (SHPEP) is part of an effort by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) that works to build a Culture of Health. As the nation’s largest philanthropy focused on improving health and health care, RWJF strives to build a national Culture of Health that will enable all to live longer, healthier lives now and for future generations. Aspiring health professionals are poised to be tomorrow’s change leaders in helping build a Culture of Health in their communities and the nation. And to bring about meaningful change, health professionals must know how to learn and work together across disciplines. SHPEP exposes students to a range of health professions to help realize this vision.
Explore SHPEP at 25
Created to commemorate the program’s 25th anniversary, this booklet captures an earlier moment in SHPEP’s history and reflects on the people, milestones, and impact that shaped the program’s first quarter-century.