Richard Sofoluke of Owings Mills, other Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine student leaders, create new organization to create opportunities for under-represented in medicine (URM) students

2018 May 21

Richard Sofoluke of Owings Mills, a member of Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine' s MBS Class of 2018, along with other GCSOM student leaders created a new organization dedicated to creating opportunities and networking for the school's under-represented in medicine (URM) students. The students named their new organization Association of Multicultural Students in Medicine (AMSM). The effort inlcuded members of the school's chapter of the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS), who joined with a group of GCSOM medical students to launch AMSM.

The organization elected an executive board which includes:

o President - Sotonye Douglas

o Co-Vice Presidents - Cameron Rutledge and Kwame Quaye

o Treasurer - Christina Michel

o Secretary - Amitha Sundaram

o Diversity and Inclusion Liaison - Tiffany Atabansi

o Institutional Advancement & Communications Chair - Vanessa Nansamba

o Student Engagement Committee Members - Cedric Jean-Philippe and Yvonne Maosa

o Community Service Committee Members - Cynthia Okpala, Tutu Olowu and Jodell Cherubin

MAPS president, Sotonye Douglas said student leaders formed AMSM as a way to include medical students in MAPS activities. MAPS, represents the undergraduate and post-baccalaureate students. The mission of MAPS is to eliminate ethnic health disparities.

Since its founding, AMSM has undertaken numerous high-profile activities at GCSOM. Most notably, the group planned and organized GCSOM's first Freedom Seder, an event that intertwines the archetypal story of the Israelites' deliverancefromslaveryinancient Egyptwith more modern liberation struggles. The group also advocated for funding to travel to the University of Pennsylvania to attend the Racism in Medicine Conference 2017. The purpose of the conference wasto provide an opportunityfor people in healthcare or related fields to examinethe ways that racism affects the health of marginalized peopleand to develop strategies to oppose it. AMSM members also took part in GCSOM's successful first Super Science Saturday for Girls, an event with interactive science stations meant to spark girls; interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).

AMSM's activities were so numerous and successful, they helped GCSOM's MAPS chapter win National MAPS Member of the Year at the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) national conference, held in March in San Francisco.

"We worked to enhance the collaborative culture at our school and we think AMSM is structured to last as a thriving student organization that will become part of the fabric of GCSOM," said Ms. Douglas.