Alumni Stories

Dr. Dotson participated in SMDEP at the Yale School of Medicine in 2012. He completed college at the University of Texas at Dallas, where he studied neuroscience, while minoring in music, with an emphasis in classical piano and composition. Today, Dr. Dotson is a resident Ophthalmologist at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics.

Mr. Barca attended SHPEP in 2020 at the University of Florida College of Medicine. He is currently a fourth-year biochemistry student at the University of Florida and plans on taking a gap year upon graduating in December 2022. During this time, Mr. Barca plans on working as a clinical research assistant and will be applying to medical school during the 2023 cycle.

Ms. Ngouonga graduated from the University of Washington in 2021 with a degree in medical anthropology and global health. Today, she is a research coordinator in the University of Washington’s Gynecologic Oncology department where she works on studies of ovarian cancer genetics and endometrial cancer disparities.

Ms. Palushi attended SMDEP in 2015 at Howard University College of Medicine. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland College Park School of Public Health in 2017. She is now a third-year medical student.

Ms. Tobongye attended SHPEP in 2020 at the University of Iowa. Since her participation in SHPEP, she graduate from Grand View University in 2021 with a bachelor's degree in Biology and minor in Chemistry and honors on a pre-medical track.

Ms. Duckett is a rising senior at Spelman College majoring in Psychology on the pre-medical track. She will complete her undergraduate program in May 2023. She participated in the SHPEP virtual program at Columbia University in 2020.

Dr. Asha Morrow attended SMDEP in 2007 at Columbia University. She graduated from Emory University School of Medicine in 2013, and now lives in Houston, Texas, where she is a pediatric emergency physician.

Ms. Awura Ama Afari is MBA graduate from Mercy College. After attending SHPEP in 2017, she completed a bachelor's degree in health services administration and a master's degree in business administration with a concentration in healthcare management. Ms. Afari currently works as a project manager at MedRite Urgent Care in New York, NY.

Mr. Jeudy participated in SHPEP in 2019 at the University of California Los Angeles and Charles R. Drew University. Currently, he is senior at Louisiana State University and expects to graduate in December 2022 with a degree in kinesiology with a pre-medicine concentration.

Ms. Mitchell participated in SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Iowa. She graduated from the University of Iowa in 2022 with a degree in Interdepartmental Studies: Multidisciplinary Sciences, Health Science Track with a minor in Spanish.

Mr. Davila participated in SHPEP in 2020 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.S. in Biology. Mr. Davila is currently enrolled in Boston University's Oral Health Sciences graduate program.

Ms. Light participated in SMDEP at the University of California Los Angeles in 2016. She is currently in her third-year of dental school at UCLA School of Dentistry.

Mr. Traylor is a 2002 program scholar of the Minority Medical Education Program at the University of Alabama, Birmingham. He graduated from Arizona State University with a bachelor of science in microbiology and community health promotion (Northern Arizona University). Mr. Traylor went on to earn a master of science in pharmacology and a masters of public health from Michigan State University.

Mr. David Graham participated in SHPEP in 2022 at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. In May of 2024, he will graduate with a bachelor's degree in cell & molecular biology. Mr. Graham serves as a SHPEP Ambassador, and has also shadowed and worked at the University Hospital Newark and Robert Wood Johnson New Brunswick University Hospital.

Ms. Mobombo attended SHPEP at UAB in 2018. She graduated in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in Biology and minor in Human Development and Family Studies. Ms. Mobombo became EMT certified and worked as a medical assistant in urgent care, then in urology. She is entering a PA program this fall (2022) and is expected to finish December 2024.

Ms. Cunningham attended SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Florida. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in public health, in May 2022. Ms. Cunningham is currently working on a master’s degree at the University of Georgia, in comparative Biomedical sciences. She will be taking the MCAT in August and applying to medical school for admission into the 2023 class!

Ms. Kachman attended SHPEP in 2021 at the University of Washington. During her undergraduate studies, she earned her CNA, worked as the program director for Adopt a Grandparent, and studied public health and traditional medicine abroad in Ecuador. She will be graduating in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in History.

Mr. Hilaire attended SMDEP in 2015 at the University of Virginia. Today, he is a second-year dental student at the Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine at Boston University. He graduated with a B.S. in Biological Sciences from the University of Maryland, College Park in December 2017, and completed a post-baccalaureate certificate program in 2020 at the George Squared Program between George Mason and Georgetown Universities.

Ms. Peralta attended SMDEP in 2016 at the University of Nebraska. Today, she is a dental student in the class of 2025 at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine.

Ms. Gabrielle LeNoir participated in SHPEP in her home state of Houston, Texas at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in 2021. Today, she is a senior at Southern University and A&M College majoring in biology with plans to attend dental school.

Ms. Cooley participated in SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. Today, she is a dental student (D1) at The University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston.

Istabraq Musa is a rising junior at Johns Hopkins University. She is pursuing a bachelor's degree in neuroscience, with a focus on systems, and preparing to graduate in May. Ms. Musa participated in SHPEP during the summer of 2022, at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. When she is not studying for exams or working at the research lab, she loves to cook and spend time with friends and family.

Ms. Roberts attended SHPEP in 2018 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago in May 2020. Today, she attends an MCAT preparatory program at the University of Michigan and works as a full-time research assistant in the Department of Neurosurgery.

Ms. Lopez is a Senior at Arizona State University, double majoring in biological sciences and global health, minoring in Spanish, and a certificate in cross-sector leadership. She is a pre-med student and will be graduating in May of 2023. Ms. Lopez attended SHPEP at Rutgers, The State of New Jersey in 2020. Since then, she has been a SHPEP ambassador and is a member of the SHPEP National Alumni Advisory Board.

Ms. Villavicencio attended SMDEP in 2008 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, NE. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies with an emphasis in public health, Mexican-American studies and Spanish translation and interpretation from the University of Arizona in May 2011. In 2017, she completed a Public Health Training Certificate for American Indian Health Professionals from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Ms. Drakes attend SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Iowa. She recently completed a master's degree in Public Healthcare Systems.

Mr. Ramos participated in SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Louisville. He studied industrial microbiology at the University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez. Today, he is a pharmacy student at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Mr. Collazo attended SHPEP in 2018 at Western University of Health Sciences. Today, he is a medical student (M1) at Ponce Health Sciences University School of Medicine in Puerto Rico.

Ms. Ahazie attended SHPEP in 2018 at Western University of Health Sciences. Today, she a research assistant at the Center for Global Development (CGD) in Washington, DC. She recently completed a master's degree in International Affairs and specializations in Global Security and Global Health from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland.

Ms. Burks attended SHPEP in 2020. Today, she is a first-year pharmacy student at The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (College of Pharmacy) and will graduate in May 2026.

Kennedy Campbell participated in SHPEP in 2021. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in May 2023. Today, she is Master of Biomedical Sciences Candidate at the University of Chicago.

Ms. Waldon participated in SHPEP in 2020 at UCLA. She has since earned her bachelor's degree and is a candidate for medical school.

Ms. Bice attended SHPEP in 2018 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She graduated from UAB with a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and a Master of Science in Graduate Biomedical Science. She is currently taking a gap year before applying to medical school.

Ms. Halder participated in SMDEP in 2013 at Case Western Reserve University. She is a third-year medical student at Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, interested in applying for a psychiatry residency.

Mr. Viramontes attended SMDEP in 2014 at UCLA. He graduated from the University of California Riverside with a degree in Anthropology in 2016 and later went onto completing a pre-medical post baccalaureate program at UCLA in 2017. Today, he is in his first year of podiatric medical school at Western University of Health Sciences College of Podiatric Medicine.

Mr. Amish-Malik participated in SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He is a pre-medical, second-year graduate student pursuing a Master of Science in Epidemiology and will graduate in May 2024.

Mr. Reyes participated in SHPEP at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey in 2020. He graduated from the Honors College at Rutgers University Newark with a BA in Neurobiology and a minor in Chemistry. Currently, Mr. Reyes is a field support volunteer for the Hospice of New Jersey and crisis counselor for a national crisis suicide prevention text line.

Ms. Abduljaleel attended SHPEP in 2022 at Rutgers University. She attends the University of Southern Maine pursuing a degree in human biology on a pre-medical track with an expected graduation year of 2025.

Mr. Alzeir earned his bachelor's degree in biochemistry from the University of Washington, 2021. He will be attending the University of Washington School of Medicine, summer 2023.

Ms. Morales-Cortés is a second-year (PY2) Pharm.D. student at the University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus School of Pharmacy. She will graduate with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree in May 2025.

Ms. Kulchar she participated in SHPEP in 2021 at UCLA. She is a junior at Princeton University majoring in Chemistry and minoring in both Global Health and Health Policy as well as Materials Science and; Engineering. She hopes to pursue a dual DMD/PhD degree after graduating.

Dr. Trevino is a third-year pediatrics resident at the Medical College of Wisconsin & Children’s Wisconsin with a clinical passion for pediatric emergency medicine. He participated in SMDEP at Columbia University in 2005.

Ms. Sana Murtaza Bhalli participated in SHPEP in 2021 at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. She graduated from the University of Illinois at Chicago with a degree in Integrated Health Sciences and a minor in Nutrition.

Ms. Dobson attended SHPEP in 2017 at Howard University. A Richmond, VA native, she received her Bachelor of Science in Clinical Neuroscience from Virginia Tech in 2019. Currently, Ms. Dobson is a class of 2024 Doctor of Dental Surgery candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Adams School of Dentistry.

Ms. Aulakh attended SHPEP in 2020 at the University of Iowa. Today, he is a pre-dental senior and psychology major.

Dr. Jiggetts participated in SMDEP at the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 2008. She completed her undergraduate studies from Stony Brook University. Dr. Jiggetts went on to attend SUNY Downstate College of Medicine and completed her residency in OB/GYN at Stony Brook University Hospital in 2020.

Ms. Turner attended SHPEP in 2019 at the University of Texas Houston Science Center. She graduated May 2022 from Agnes Scott College. Today, Ms. Turner is a traditional BSN, 3rd semester nursing student at Nell Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University.

Ms. Vera Yusuf participated in SHPEP in 2022. Today, she is studying public health on a pre-dental track at the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University with an expected graduation date of May 2024.

Ms. Natha graduated from Occidental College in 2019 with a degree in biology (a focus on cell and molecular) and a minor in kinesiology. Today, she is a dental student at the University of Washington School of Dentistry, graduating in the Class of 2025. She is also a part of the RIDE (Regional Initiatives in Dental Education) program, an educational track focused on training dentists in rural and underserved populations in Washington. She participated in the SHPEP program at the University of Washington in 2017.