Tuesday, October 15, 2024 8 - 9 PM ET
From High School to Healthcare: Black Students in Medicine!
Fam, did you know that only 5% of all doctors in the United States are Black? Well, BigFuture’s Real Talk and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) teamed up for a free virtual event to help change this stat. Tap in and watch this inspiring event featuring Black doctors who successfully navigated the journey from high school to the medical field. You’ll hear about how to become a doctor and how to prepare now in high school for med school with BigFuture’s help. RSVP now and don’t forget to tap in for this special #RealTalkTuesday on Tuesday, October 15, 8 p.m. – 9 p.m. ET!
✨👉🏾Students, tap in for this event, here!
✨👉🏾Parents/Caring Adults, register for this event, here!
Meet our Guest Speakers
Dwight Davis, M.D.
Dr. Davis, a Professor of Medicine at the Heart and Vascular Institute, serves as Chair of the Clinical Pastoral Education Professional Advisory Committee at Hershey Medical Center and Co-director of the Cardiac Rehabilitation Program. He is a member of the Heart Failure/Cardiac Transplantation Service at Penn State College of Medicine and a former Senior Associate Dean for Admissions and Financial Aid. Dr. Davis earned his B.S. in Engineering Physics from North Carolina A&T State University and his M.D. from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where he received the top clinical medical student award and was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine at Boston University/Boston City Hospitals and a fellowship in Cardiology at Duke University Medical Center. At Penn State, he has held numerous roles, including Director of the Heart Station and Cardiology Fellowship Program. Dr. Davis is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, American Heart Association, and American College of Cardiology, and has authored 46 scientific publications. He has received 14 teaching awards at the College of Medicine.
Priscilla M. Mpasi, M.D., FAAP
Dr. Priscilla Mpasi is the Assistant Medical Director for the Clinically Integrated Network (Medicaid) and a primary care Pediatrician at ChristianaCare Health System. She completed a health policy fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania and focuses on healthcare system navigation for vulnerable populations, Medicaid network adequacy, and health equity. Dr. Mpasi earned her B.S. in Psychology from Duke University and her M.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, followed by a pediatrics residency at the University of Maryland Children’s Hospital. She is pursuing a Master of Science in Health Policy and Research from the University of Pennsylvania. A nationally recognized leader in health policy, she chairs the Delaware Healthy Mother and Infant Consortium and serves on the Board of Trustees for the National Medical Association. Dr. Mpasi has received numerous awards, including the National Minority Quality Forum 40 Under 40 Leader in Health and the AMA Women Physicians Section Inspiration Award. Originally from Silver Spring, MD, with roots in the Democratic Republic of Congo, she resides in Philadelphia, PA.
Russell J. Ledet, M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A.
Dr. Russell J. Ledet (pronounced “Leh-day”), a native of Lake Charles, Louisiana, served in the U.S. Navy as a Ceremonial Guardsman and cryptologist, earning multiple Navy Achievement Medals. After transitioning to the USN Reserves, he completed Bachelor’s degrees in Chemistry and Biology at Southern University and A&M College. He then earned a Ph.D. in Molecular Oncology and Tumor Immunology from NYU School of Medicine, focusing on prostate cancer research. Dr. Ledet co-founded The 15 White Coats during his medical training at Tulane School of Medicine and Freeman School of Business. Featured on major media outlets, he is currently completing a Triple Board Residency at Indiana University, aiming to improve mental health accessibility for marginalized communities.
Lynne Holden, M.D.
Dr. Lynne Holden is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, NY, and a practicing Emergency Department Physician at Montefiore Health System (Moses Campus). She also serves as the Senior Associate Dean of Diversity Enhancement at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and has been a member of the Emergency Medicine Admissions Committee for 20 years and the Einstein Medical School Admissions Committee for 13 years. Dr. Holden co-founded and is President Emeritus of Mentoring in Medicine, a national nonprofit that has inspired and equipped nearly 80,000 students, parents, and educators through academic enrichment, leadership development, civic engagement, and mentoring, helping over 1,000 students become health professionals, including 568 physicians or medical students. She earned her B.S. in Zoology from Howard University, graduated from Temple University School of Medicine, and completed her residency in Emergency Medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Holden is a member of the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM), Friends of the National Library of Medicine (FNLM), Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., a Deacon at the Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem, NY, and a member of WellMet, a female giving circle supporting social justice organizations.
Jenny N. Ijoma
Jenny is an MD/PhD student in the Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School-Princeton University MD/PhD program, pursuing an MD from Rutgers and a PhD in Molecular Biology from Princeton. Her goal is to become a physician-scientist and principal investigator, focusing on internal medicine, immunology, infectious disease, and hematology/oncology. She is passionate about joining academic medicine and advocating for marginalized communities both locally and globally.
