New Century Scholars
The Academic Pediatric Association New Century Scholars Program is a mentorship program aimed at increasing the diversity of the academic general pediatric workforce
Rationale:
- Racial and ethnic disparity in child health and health care is an increasingly important issue, particularly as US demographics become more diversified.
- One approach to decreasing racial/ethnic disparities is to increase the number of minority pediatricians working in academic settings (i.e., education, research and clinical care).
- One way to increase minority recruitment into academic careers is to provide role models and mentors to pediatric trainees during the time when career plans are being formed.
APA NCScholars© Program:
- The program selects under-represented minority (URM) pediatric residents who have interest in pursuing careers in academic general pediatrics or related fields (e.g., behavior/developmental pediatrics, adolescent medicine) to become NCScholars©.
- NCScholars© are recruited in the second year of residency, and continue in the program through the end of residency, as long as they remain in good standing.
- NCScholars© are matched with junior and senior mentors who provide ongoing support to the scholar during residency, career planning, fellowship application process, and onward.
- Junior Mentors: Fellows in training programs and junior faculty who have interests in the areas of racial/ethnic child health disparities, cultural competency, and minority child health and development, and who have a commitment to mentorship and the program goals.
- Senior mentors: APA members who are educators or researchers working in the fields of racial/ethnic child health disparities, cultural competency, and minority child health and development, who have strong mentorship abilities and who have a commitment to mentorship and the program goals.
- NCScholars© and their mentors meet during the annual PAS meetings, and continue contact throughout the year through email and phone.
- NCScholars© receive a travel grant to attend the annual PAS meetings (including travel, room, and registration fees).
- NCScholars© attend a special one day conference the day before the PAS meeting.
- A dinner banquet is held honoring the NCScholars©, attended by APA leadership, fellowship directors, and guests.
- NCScholars© are in contact with mentors and Program staff throughout the PAS meeting.
- It is required that all NCScholars© attend the annual PAS meetings and the New Century Scholars Conference the day before the PAS begins. Residency programs are asked to help with residency scheduling so that the NCScholar© may attend.
- Ongoing activities:
- NCScholars© are provided free membership in the APA during their residency
- Career counseling by program directors and mentors
- Website and Listserv for NCScholars©
- Support during fellowship application and post-residency career planning
APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR THE CLASS OF 2013 NEW CENTURY SCHOLARS
Application no longer available. The deadline has passed.
Click here for more information and application
PROGRAM STAFF:
Director:
Lee Pachter, DO
Lpachter@drexelmed.edu
215-427-8905
Co-Director:
Cheryl Kodjo, MD, MPH
Cheryl_Kodjo@URMC.Rochester.edu
Coordinator:
Jennifer Padilla
Jennifer@academicpeds.org
APA Welcomes Class of 2013 New Century Scholars
The APA New Century Scholars Program is beginning its ninth year. The goal of the program is to increase workforce diversity in academic pediatrics by selecting under-represented minority pediatric trainees interested in entering academic careers, and providing mentorship and career counseling. Each NCScholar is linked with both a junior and senior mentor, receives a travel grant to attend the PAS meeting, and participates in a one-day NCScholars conference at the PAS meeting. NCScholars and mentors build a long-term relationship, and the NCS program directors provide mentorship and career planning guidance as well.
The Class of 2013 New Century Scholars has recently been selected. They are second year pediatric residents or third year med/peds residents. The NCScholars are:
- Elysia Alvarez (Stanford, Lucille Packard Children's Hospital)
- Merrian Brooks (Cooper University Hospital)
- Emmanuel Chandler (Medical University of South Carolina)
- Nneka Edwards-Jackson (University of California San Francisco)
- Marquita Genies (University of North Carolina)
- Maryann (Abi) Pitts (Stanford, Lucille Packard Children's Hospital)
- Deanna Wilson (Johns Hopkins)
They will be joining our returning Class of 2012 NCScholars: Milissa Carter (Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences); Amaziah Coleman (University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences); Emily McElveen (Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences); David Myles (Johns Hopkins School of Medicine); Loren Robinson (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill); and Vanessa Salcedo (Columbia University Medical Center).
We'd like to thank our selection committee, as well as the US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority Health, who generously funds this program.
Please welcome the NCScholars when you see them at the PAS meeting. For more information on the program please see our website at http://www.academicpeds.org/events/new_century_scholars.cfm. If you have any questions, or are interested in becoming a mentor in the program, please contact us (Lee Pachter: Lpachter@drexelmed.edu; Cheryl Kodjo: Cheryl.Kodjo@urmc.rochester.edu ).
Submitted by
Cheryl Kodjo
New Century Scholars Program Co-Director
Cheryl.Kodjo@urmc.rochester.edu
Lee Pachter
New Century Scholars Program Director
Lpachter@drexelmed.edu
