Minority and Disadvantaged Students Attend
Summer Scholars Program Held by OU-COM's Center of Excellence
Editor's Note: For more information, please contact Kevin Sanders, writer/editor,
at (740) 593-0896.
ATHENS, Ohio (July 19, 2000) -- The annual Summer Scholars Program is underway at the
Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine (OU-COM) to enhance the
preparation of students from minority and disadvantaged backgrounds for
admission to medical school.
Twenty-two students from throughout the United States are
participating in this year's highly selective program, which runs from June
26 to Aug. 18. The program, begun in 1983, is intended to enhance the
undergraduate premedical preparation of its participants and make them more
competitive in the application process for medical school.
Joni Schaller, Health Careers Opportunity Program coordinator, said
the program is one of the most successful sponsored by the Center of
Excellence for Multicultural Medicine. One reason for its success is the
length of time it has been in operation, she said. "The second reason for
its success is the collaboration of our office, OU-COM Office of Admissions
and the faculty working together to help those from minority and
disadvantaged backgrounds gain the preparation they need to enter medical
school," she said.
Objectives of the Summer Scholars Program include: introducing
students to osteopathic principles and practices; exposing them to basic
biomedical sciences taught by medical school faculty; introducing them to a
variety of learning situations used in medical school; providing them the
opportunity to demonstrate readiness to enter medical school both in terms
of academic skills and personal character; allowing individuals to interview
for admission to medical school or to practice good interviewing skills; and
providing students with the experience of working as a team with other
minority premed students from diverse backgrounds.
Dana Collins, 21, of Gary, Ind., described the Summer Scholars
Program as "very intense." A biology and chemistry major from St. Joseph
College in Rensselaer, Ind., Collins said the workload includes lectures,
tests, labs and presentations.
"It's really helping prepare us for medical school - all the trials
and tribulations," she said. "I'm enjoying it, but the key is you have to
have the desire to stick with it. There's so much material and so little
time, for those who don't like it, it might be difficult."
A special part of the program consists of seminars by physicians at
the college who address such topics as medical ethics, public health, family
medicine, radiology, surgery, pathology, emergency medicine and
underrepresented minority physicians in osteopathic medicine.
Yessmenia McDaniel, 26, of Port Arthur, Texas, biology major from
Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, said Summer Scholars has given her the
experience she needs to excel in medical school. "It's been great," she
said. "We've gotten lots of exposure to the kinds of challenges we'll face
in medical school."
Selection criteria for the program specify that students be from a
disadvantaged background, that they be U.S. citizens or have permanent
residency, that they have a minimum of one year each of college-level
chemistry and biology and that they have recommendations from undergraduate
faculty members. Students selected for the program receive room and board, a
stipend, program materials and travel expenses to and from Athens.
For more information on the Summer Scholars Program, contact
OU-COM's Center of Excellence for Multicultural Medicine at (740) 593-2135.
M. Grijalva
Mario Grijalva, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biomedical sciences,
teaches immunology during a Summer Scholars Program class. Summer Scholars
is one of several programs that the Ohio University College of Osteopathic
Medicine hosts during the summer to help prepare students from various
backgrounds for medical school.
