Where are they now?


1998


Karlene M. Hart (Boswell), M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 1998 while an undergraduate student at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts Medical School in 2005. Currently, Karlene is practicing family medicine in Georgia. Karlene served as a student advisor in 2008, 2012, and 2018.


Mayra E. Lorenzo, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 1998 while in her third year of an M.D./Ph.D. program at Harvard Medical School. She graduated in 2004. Mayra is presently an Attending Dermatologist and serves as Vice Chief for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Dermatology Department at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Assistant Professor in Dermatology at Harvard Medical School. She served as a student advisor in 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2018, 2021 and 2023. Mayra was named to the 2017 BSCP Honor Roll.


Nilton D. Medina, M.D., F.A.C.S. received a Hope Scholarship in 1998 while an undergraduate at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He graduated in 1999. Nilton graduated from Dartmouth Medical School in 2003.  He served as a student advisor in 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018. Nilton was named to the 2013 BSCP Honor Roll and was the recipient of the BSCP George H. Kaye Alumni Award for Outstanding Service to Others in 2014.

 

Ricardo M. Zayas, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 1998 while a Ph.D. candidate in Biology at Tufts University. He graduated in 2003. Ricardo is presently a Professor of Biology, in the Department of Biology at San Diego State University in California. He served as a student advisor in 2008.



1999


Marlon D. Green received a Hope Scholarship in 1999 while an undergraduate student at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He graduated in 2002. Reverend Green obtained a Master’s in Healthcare Management from Cambridge College in 2008. Currently, he is a Clinical Research Manager at Boston Children’s Hospital.


Tina-Ann Kerr-Thompson, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 1999 while a medical student at Boston University School of Medicine. She graduated in 2001. Tina-Ann is presently a Delegating Physician at AboutFace Skincare and Chief Medical Officer of Primary Care at DeKalb Medical Physicians Group in Georgia.

 

Raymond R. Montoya, II, D.P.M., received a Hope Scholarship in 1999 while a student at Catholic Memorial High School.  In 2004, Raymond graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  He graduated from Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in 2010.  Currently, Raymond is a practicing podiatrist at Northwestern Medical Group in Chicago.


2000


Joyce I. Imahiyerobo-IP, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2000 while a junior at Harvard College. She graduated in 2001 and in 2003, she obtained a Master’s degree in International Development from Cambridge University, England. She graduated from the Weill Cornell Medical College with her medical degree in 2008. Joyce is the founder of Vibrant Dermatology in Massachusetts.


Yasmin Khawja, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2000 while a freshman at Swarthmore College. She graduated in 2003. In 2012, Yasmin graduated with her medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She is currently a board-certified Internist for Penn Medicine.  Yasmin served as a student advisor in 2014, 2018 and 2021.


Chukwuka (Chuka) Okafor, M.D., M.B.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2000 while a medical student at Boston University School of Medicine. Chuka received his M.B.A. from the American University Kogod School of Business in 2003 and a medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine in 2004. He is currently a Fellowship Trained Spine Surgeon and Board Certified Orthopaedic Surgeon at the Spine Institute of Central Florida.  He served as a student advisor in 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018. Chuka was the recipient of the BSCP George H. Kaye Alumni Award for Outstanding Service to Others in 2016.


Carl E. Reid, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2000 while a Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences. He graduated in 2001. Carl is currently an Adjunct Professor of Microbiology at Roxbury Community College and a high school science teacher at Boston Public Schools. He served as a student advisor in 2002, 2004, 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014.



2001


Gillianne DeFoe, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2001 while working at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in the Department of Sarcoma. Gillianne received her medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 2006. She is currently a Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiation Oncology at the Hillman Cancer Center at St. Margaret’s Hospital in Pittsburgh.  Gillianne served as a student advisor in 2021 and 2023.


Elizabeth Glater, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2001 while a graduate student at Brown University. She was awarded her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Harvard University in 2006 and completed her postdoctoral work at the Rockefeller University. She is currently an Associate Professor of Neuroscience at Pomona College in Claremont, California. Elizabeth served as a student advisor in 2008 and 2010.


Lina Pabon-Nau, M.D., M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2001 while a first-year medical student at the State of New York Medical School in Brooklyn. She graduated in 2004 and received her M.P.H. from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in 2009. She is currently Attending Physician in Primary Care at Newton-Wellesley Hospital. Lina served as a student advisor in 2008 and 2010.


Sederick C. Rice, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2001 while a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Vermont. He received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology in 2003. He is currently a Center for Advancement of STEM Leadership Fellow and Chair of the Arkansas Minority Health Commission. In addition, he is a tenured Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and is the Site Director of the HBCU Med-Track Program.



2002


Jason Badrinarain received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while pursuing a Master’s degree at the University of Massachusetts Boston. He is currently Team Lead of Anatomic Molecular Pathology at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center.


Sarah Bentil, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while a junior at the University of Vermont. She graduated in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science degree in both Mechanical Engineering and Mathematics. In 2006, she graduated from the University of Hawaii at Mānoa with her M.S. in Mechanical Engineering. She graduated from The Ohio State University with her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering in 2013. She is currently an Assistant Professor in both the Mechanical Engineering Department and the Neuroscience Interdepartmental Graduate Program at Iowa State University of Science and Technology. Sarah is also an affiliate faculty member in the Biomedical Sciences Department at Iowa State University of Science and Technology. She served as a student advisor in 2014 and 2021.

 

Rogette Esteve, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while a senior at Boston Latin School. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006. Rogette finished a Post-Baccalaureate program at the University of Massachusetts Boston in 2010. She graduated with her medical degree from The Ohio State University in 2016. Rogette is currently an emergency medicine specialist in Baltimore, MD. She served as a student advisor in 2018 and 2021.

 

Natalie Etienne received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while a sophomore at Tufts University. She graduated in 2004. Natalie graduated from The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing with a B.S.N. in 2008. She is currently an R.N. at Mt. Sinai Medical Center.


Angelo Green, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Angelo graduated in 2004 with a Ph.D. in Molecular and Cellular Biology. He is currently an Assistant Director of the Division of Ophthalmic Devices in the Office of Ophthalmic, Anesthesia, Respiratory, ENT, and Dental Devices, at the Food and Drug Administration.


Hector Martinez-Wilson, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University School of Medicine. Hector graduated with his M.D./Ph.D. in Molecular Microbiology in 2010. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology at Duke University School of Medicine.  Hector served as a student advisor in 2021.

 

Vanessa Toney (Bobb), M.D., Ph.D., Vanessa Toney (Bobb), M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2002 while an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She received her Ph.D. in Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology, and Biotechnology in 2004 and her medical degree in 2006.  Vanessa is the Vice President of Behavioral Health and Medical Integration at Capital District Physicians’ Health Plan, Inc. in New York.



2003


Patrick Zana Desgranges, M.D., Ph.D., FACP, Patrick Zana Desgranges, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2003 while an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University School of Medicine. He graduated in 2007. Zana is currently a Hospitalist at Swedish-Providence Health in Seattle and Scripps Health in San Diego.  He is also a Co-founder at FreeState Healthcare, a digital health startup.


Nimisha Kalia, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2003 while a first-year medical student at the University of South Florida College of Medicine. She graduated in 2007. Nimisha graduated with her M.B.A./M.P.H. degrees in Occupational and Environmental Medicine in 2012. She is currently Assistant Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University, and Chief Medical Officer at General Electric. Nimisha served as a student advisor in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022, and she was the recipient of the George H. Kaye Alumni Award for Outstanding Service to Others in 2021.

 

Cristina M. Velazquez-Marrero, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2003 while a Ph.D. candidate in the Neuroscience Department at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2008. Cristina is currently a tenure-track Assistant Professor at the University of Puerto Rico and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in the Department of Neurobiology.

 

Ida (Aidita) Wahlquist-Ortiz, J.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2003 while a junior at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She graduated in 2004. Ida graduated with her J.D. from American University Washington College of Law in 2010. Ida is a founder member at the Co LaunchPad.



2004

 

Sherry-Ann Brown, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2004 while a graduate student at Wesleyan University. Sherry-Ann graduated with her Master’s degree in Physics in 2004. She graduated with her M.D./Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Medicine in 2012. Sherry-Ann is currently an Assistant Professor and Director of Cardio-Oncology at the Medical College of Wisconsin and a Research Collaborator at the Mayo Clinic. She served as a student advisor in 2021.

 

Wayne Lloyd DeBeatham, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2004 while a second-year medical student at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. He graduated in 2008. Wayne is currently a Surgeon at NYC Health & Hospitals.  He served as a student advisor in 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

 

Robert L. Gray, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2004 while a third-year medical student at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. He graduated in 2005. Robert is currently an Attending Surgeon at NorthShore University Health System in Evanston, Illinois, and an Assistant Professor of Hand and Microvascular Surgery in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Chicago.

 

Antoinne Y. Machal-Cajigas received a Hope Scholarship in 2004 while an undergraduate with advanced sophomore standing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he graduated with his undergraduate degree in 2007 and with his Master’s degree in Engineering in 2009. Currently, he is a Solutions Engineer at Keysight Technologies. Antoinne is also a cofounder of Altruhelp.com, an online platform for volunteering, that recommends opportunities and spotlights community service.

 

Sasha McGee, Ph.D., M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2004 while working on her Ph.D. at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology Program. She graduated in 2008. Sasha received her M.P.H. in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2012. She is currently a Program Scientist at Cherokee Nation Strategic Programs contracted to the Integrated Biosurveillance Branch of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division of the Defense Health Agency. Sasha served as a student advisor in 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.



2005

 

Amara Ezeamama, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2005 while a Ph.D. candidate in Epidemiology at Brown University. She graduated in 2006. She is presently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Michigan State University.  Amara served as a student advisor in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2018, 2020, and 2021.

 

Nery Porras, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2005 while a senior at Brookline High School. He graduated with his undergraduate degree in Human Evolutionary Biology from Harvard University in 2009.  Nery graduated with his medical degree from The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University in 2017. He is currently an Emergency Medicine Physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital of Chicago.

 

Judah Weathers, M.D., D.Phil., received a Hope Scholarship in 2005 while a first-year medical student at Yale University School of Medicine. Judah finished the Ph.D. component of an M.D./Ph.D. degree in Psychiatry at Oxford University, England in 2012. He finished the M.D. component in 2013. Judah is currently the Medical Director of Behavioral Health at Elliot Hospital in Manchester, New Hampshire.  He is also a Voluntary Community Clinical Faculty at Yale University Child Study Center and Adjunct Teaching Clinical Faculty at Dartmouth Medical School. He served as a student advisor in 2014 and 2021.


2006


Shauna R. Andersson (Hutchinson), M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2006 while an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at Tufts University School of Medicine. She graduated in 2013. Shauna is currently a Clinical Research Director at Sanofi Genzyme. She served as a student advisor in 2016, 2018 and 2023.

 

Leslie L. Diaz, V.M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2006 while working as a senior animal technician at the Center for Comparative Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. She graduated from Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2010 and has a master’s degree in public health from the University of Minnesota. She became a diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) in 2015. Leslie is currently a Research Assistant Professor and Director of the Comparative Bioscience Center at the Rockefeller University. She served as a student advisor in 2016 and 2021.

 

Jamil B. Scott, Ph.D., M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2006 while a doctoral candidate in the Division of Medical Sciences at Harvard Medical School. She graduated in 2008 with her Ph.D. in Cell and Developmental Biology. Jamil received her M.P.H. in Family and Community Health from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in 2011. Jamil is currently a Senior Scientific Program Analyst in the Training, Diversity, and Health Equity Office at the National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institutes of Health. Jamil served as a student advisor in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022. She is an emeritus member of the BSCP Board of Directors.



2007


José O. Alemán, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2007 while an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. José graduated in 2009. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Endocrinology at New York University School of Medicine.  He leads the Laboratory of Translational Obesity Research.


Jasmine A. McDonald, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2007 while a Ph.D. candidate in the Biological Sciences in Health Program at Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. She graduated in 2009 with a concentration in Immunology and Infectious Diseases. Jasmine is currently an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University, the Assistant Director of the Cancer Research, Teaching, and Education Center at Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC), and the Co-Director of the Y.E.S in THE HEIGHTS Program at HICCC. She served as a student advisor in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.


2008


Damien Abreu, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2008 while an undergraduate at Yale University. He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry in 2010. Damien graduated with his M.D./Ph.D. from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis in 2020.  He is currently a Dermatologist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

 

Juan J. Carmona, Ph.D., M.P.H., M.B.E., received a Hope Scholarship in 2008 while a Ph.D. candidate at Harvard University as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Pre-doctoral Fellow. He graduated with his Ph.D. in 2009 and with his M.P.H. in Family and Community Health in 2010 from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Juan is currently the Director of Scientific Affairs and Professional Alliances at OraSure Technologies.

 

Roxana Mesías Gómez, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2008 while pursuing a Master’s in Biology with a concentration in Molecular Neuroscience from the City University of New York Hunter College. She graduated in 2009.  Roxana received her Ph.D. from the Ichan School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai in 2021.  She is currently the Diversity Program Manager at Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Science.

 

Marthe J. Pierre received a Hope Scholarship in 2008 while a senior at the Cambridge Rindge and Latin High School.  She graduated with her B.S.N. in 2013 and her M.S.N/N.P. in 2015 from Simmons College.  Marthe is currently a family nurse practitioner at Neighborhood PACE of East Boston Neighborhood Health Center.



2009


Jonathan Abraham, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2009 as a third-year M.D./Ph.D. candidate in the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. Jonathan graduated with the Ph.D. portion of his training in 2010 and with his M.D. in 2012. Currently, Jonathan is an Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunobiology at Harvard Medical School.  He served as a student advisor in 2018.

 

Jarrad Aguirre, M.D., M.B.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2009 while an undergraduate student majoring in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at Yale University. He graduated in 2009. Jarrad completed his M.Phil. in Medical Anthropology at the University of Oxford, England as a Rhodes Scholar in 2011. He received his M.D./M.B.A. from Stanford University in 2016. Jarrad is currently Co-founder and CEO of Miga Health in California.

Eydith Comenencia Ortiz, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2009 while a graduate student in the Integrated Sciences Program at Tufts University Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences. She graduated in 2012. Eydith is currently the Founder and CEO of Conecta Partners ORE Int. Eydith served as a student advisor in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

Vadim A. Villarroel, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2009 as a first-year medical student at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He graduated in 2014. Vadim is currently a Dermatologist at Mt. Auburn Hospital Dermatology Associates of Concord.


2010


Charisa Cottonham, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2010 as a Ph.D. candidate in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2011. Charisa is currently a Senior Scientific Researcher at Genentech in California. Charisa served as a student advisor in 2022.


Dennise A. De Jesús-Díaz, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2010 as a Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular Microbiology Program at Tufts University School of Medicine.  Dennise is currently the Chief Operating Officer at Remedy Plan Therapeutics, a start-up company focused on developing first-in-class oncology therapeutics. Dennise served as a student advisor in 2016, 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023. She is a member of the BSCP Board of Directors and serves on the committee for the BSCP Educational Relief Fund.


Nicole de Paz, M.D., M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2010 as a Junior at Yale University.  She graduated in 2011.  She graduated with her medical degree in 2016 from Harvard Medical School.  Nicole completed a Master’s in Public Health from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in 2021.  She is currently a Primary Care Pediatrician.  Nicole served as a student advisor in 2018.


Ugonna Ijeoma, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2010 while a second-year medical student at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. She graduated in 2012. Ugonna is currently a physician and Medical Officer in the Division of Global HIV and Tuberculosis at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. She served as a student advisor in 2014, 2016, and 2021.



2011



Angel S. Byrd, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2011 as an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She graduated with her M.D. in 2012 and her Ph.D. in 2016.  Currently, she is an Assistant Professor at Howard University College of Medicine and Adjunct Assistant Professor at JHUSOM (Departments of Dermatology) where her work centers on the establishment of tissue biorepositories to understand the immunopathological mechanisms contributing to skin of color diseases, particularly among African-American patients with Hidradenitis suppurativa.  She served as a student advisor in 2018, 2020 and 2021.


Yendelela (Yanda) L. Cuffee, Ph.D., M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2011 as a third-year Ph.D. student in the Clinical and Population Health Research Program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2012. She is an Assistant Professor in the Epidemiology Program at the University of Delaware.  She served as a student advisor in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023.


Jonas Mark Sacro, M.B.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2011 as an undergraduate majoring in Chemistry at the University of Connecticut where he transferred from Manchester Community College. Jonas graduated in 2013.   He is currently a Manager, Supply Chain Lead at Pfizer. He received his M.B.A. in 2020 from the University of Rhode Island.


Alexander (Alex) Tejeda received a Hope Scholarship in 2011 as a junior at Dartmouth College majoring in Latin Caribbean Studies with a minor in Biology. He graduated in 2012. Alex is currently an M.D. candidate at Howard University College of Medicine.


2012


Theophelus (Theo) B. Hill, M.D., M.B.A., M.S., received a Hope Scholarship in 2012 as a second-year medical student at Howard University College of Medicine. He graduated in 2014. Theo is currently the Medical Director of Clinical Development at Vertex Pharmaceuticals.  He has served as a student advisor in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.


Jose Alfaro Quezada, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2012 as a post-baccalaureate doing research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He graduated with a medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine in 2016. Jose completed general surgery residency in 2021 and fellowship training in Advanced GI and Bariatric Surgery Fellowship in 2022.  He is an attending general surgeon in California.


Teresa Ramirez, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2012 as a Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology and Biotechnology Program at Brown University. She graduated in 2013. Teresa is currently a program manager in the Office of Sponsored Programs at the Diversity and Grants Administration Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. Teresa served as a student advisor in 2016 and 2018 and is a member of the planning committee for the BSCP New England Science Symposium.


Mikayla Rae Thompson, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2012 as a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2014. Currently, Mikayla is the Associate Director of Regulatory Affairs, CMC at Intellia. She served as a student advisor in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022.



2013


Te-Ana Harris, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2013 as a first-year medical student at Tufts University School of Medicine. She graduated in 2019. Te-Ana is currently the Chief Resident at Lewisgate Regional Medical System in Virginia.  She served as a student advisor in 2023.


Fabian Ortega, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2013 as a senior at Yale University. He received a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Stanford University in 2018. Fabian is currently a Staff Computational Biologist for Rezo Therapeutics.


Vivian Ortiz, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2013 as a first-year medical student at Meharry Medical College.  She graduated in 2016.  Vivian is currently an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Department of Gastroenterology in the Division of Gastroenterology at Washington University of St. Louis. She served as a student advisor in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022.


Djadé I. Soumana, Ph.D., M.B.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2013 as a third-year doctoral candidate in Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He graduated in 2015. Djadé is currently an Account Manager at Cytiva. He served as a student advisor in 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022 and is a member of the BSCP Board of Directors.



2014


Lesley M. Chapman-Hannah, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2014 as a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Rochester Medical Center. She graduated in 2015. Lesley is currently a postdoctoral fellow in the NCI Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics where she is developing machine learning and statistical strategies to identify novel risk variants in pediatric cancer. She served as a student advisor in the 2018 and 2021 BSCP Student Conferences.


Lauren R. Powell, Ph.D., M.P.A., received a Hope Scholarship in 2014 as a Ph.D. candidate in the Clinical and Population Health Research program at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2016. Lauren graduated with a Master’s in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in 2017.  She is President and CEO of The Equitist.  Lauren served as a student advisor in the 2018 and 2021 BSCP Student Conferences.


Ria Roberts, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2014 as an M.D. candidate at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences.  She graduated in 2017.  Currently, Dr. Roberts has several administrative and clinical roles, serving as a Director for Diversity Inclusion and Advocacy for Graduate Medical Education (GME) at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), Director for Diversity Recruitment and Retention within the Department of Medicine at BIDMC, Geriatrician at Element Care-Program for All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), Clinical Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School, part-time nocturnist within Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians, Geriatric Medicine Consultant for DynaMed, and contributor for The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) Knowledge + Question Bank. Ria served as a student advisor in 2018, 2021, and 2023, and was the recipient of the BSCP George H. Kaye Alumni Award for Outstanding Service to Others in 2023.


2015


Aser Abrha received a Hope Scholarship in 2015 as a college student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.  He graduated in 2017. Aser is currently an M.D. candidate at Harvard Medical School.

 

Sara Guevara, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2015 as a second-year medical student at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She graduated in 2017. Sarah is now a Board-Certified Family Medicine Faculty Attending at the Glen Cove Hospital and Assistant Professor at the Northwell/Hofstra School of Medicine in New York. She serves a student advisor in 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

 

Loren Saulsberry, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2015 as a Ph.D. candidate in Health Policy with a concentration in Political Analysis at Harvard University. She graduated in 2017. Loren is currently a tenure-track faculty member in the Department of Public Health Sciences at The University of Chicago.  She is a member of the planning committee for the BSCP New England Science Symposium and served as a student advisor in 2020, 2021, and 2022.

 

Racquel Wells-Holmes, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2015 as a third-year medical student at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2016. Racquel is currently a nephrologist in North Carolina.  She served as a student advisor at the 2018 BSCP Student Conference.


2016


Hawasatu (Hawa) Dumbuya, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2016 while a Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology program at Brown University. She graduated in 2017. Hawa is currently the Manager of Medical and scientific Affairs at L’Oreal USA.  She has served as a student advisor in 2018, 2021, and 2023 BSCP Student Conferences.



Christopher Guzman, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2016 as a Ph.D. candidate studying Immunobiology at Yale University. After graduating from Yale in 2019, he worked as a management consultant at Boston Consulting Group, with a focus on Biopharma/Healthcare. He’s currently the Director of Portfolio Strategy & Analytics at Black Diamond Therapeutics in Cambridge. Christopher served as a student advisor in 2023 at the BSCP Student Conference, and is a committee member for the BSCP Educational Relief Fund.


Johnothan Smileye, Jr., M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2016 as an emerging M.D. candidate at Howard University College of Medicine. He is currently a Chief Resident at Penn Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Health System. Johnothan served as a student advisor in 2023 at the BSCP Student Conference.



2017


Rocio Nunez Pepen received a Hope Scholarship in 2017 while an undergraduate at Brown University. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Child Development in 2020.


Jessica Pierre Francois, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2017 while an M.D. candidate at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2020 and is currently a Resident Physician at Mass General Hospital. Jessica served as a student advisor in 2023 at the BSCP Student Conference.


Mariana Serrano, M.P.H., received a Hope Scholarship in 2017 as an undergraduate at Eastern Connecticut State University. She graduated in 2018. Mariana is currently the Director of Diversity and Social Impact at The Connection as well as an Adjunct Professor at Eastern Connecticut State University.  She received her Master’s in Public Health from Boston University in 2021.

McKenzi Thompson, M.P.H., received a HOPE scholarship in 2017 as a high school student at Wayland High School. After graduating high school, she attended Mills College and received her bachelor of science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2021. She graduated with her M.P.H. in 2023. Currently, McKenzi is a Research Assistant in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.


2018


Danielle Ampofo received a Hope Scholarship in 2018 as a Junior at Leicester High School. Danielle is now a Senior at the University of Massachusetts Boston. She graduated in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Biology with a minor in Public Policy.

 

Maya Dennis received a Hope scholarship in 2018 while an undergraduate at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Maya Dennis graduated in 2021 and is currently applying to medical school.


Francheska López Rivera, Ph.D.,
received a Hope Scholarship in 2018 as a third-year graduate student in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Ph.D. Program at Harvard Medical School. She graduated in 2021. Francheska is currently an HHMI Postdoctoral Research Associate in Dr. Angela DePace’s Lab at Harvard Medical School.


2019

Alexander Jeremiah received a Hope Scholarship in 2019 as an entering medical student at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.


Ashley Matthew, M.D., Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2019 as an M.D./Ph.D. candidate at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated in 2020.  She is currently a Urology Resident at VCU Health.


Senait Efrem received a Hope Scholarship in 2019 as an undergraduate at Tufts University.  She graduated in 2021. Currently, she is taking a gap year working as an ophthalmic technician before applying to medical school.


2020


Graciella Rios Ortega received a Hope Scholarship in 2020 as a senior at Simmons University. Currently, she is working as a medical assistant for the FLOAT pool at Boston Medical Center and is planning to apply to medical school.


Leeza Santiago Millan received a Hope Scholarship in 2020 as a Ph.D. candidate in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program at Harvard University.  She is expected to graduate in 2024.


Judene Thomas received a Hope Scholarship in 2020 as a Ph.D. candidate in Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Northeastern University.  She is expected to graduate in 2024.




2021

Najah Walton, Ph.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2021 as a Neuroscience PhD candidate at Tufts University.  Najah received her PhD in 2023. She is currently working as a neuroscience postdoctoral fellow in the Maguire lab and also working as a brain injury nurse at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.

 

Ayushi Aggarwal received a Hope Scholarship in 2020 as an M.D. Candidate at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.  Currently, she works in healthcare analytics at McKinsey & Co.


Grace Assabil-Bentum received a Hope Scholarship in 2021 as an undergraduate at City College of New York.  She is expected to graduate in 2023


Jaquantey Bowens, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2021 as a first-year medical student in the M.D. program at The Indiana University School of Medicine. He graduated in 2023.

Opeoluwa Olukorede, M.D., received a Hope Scholarship in 2020 as a first-year medical school student at Ross University School of Medicine. She graduated in 2023 and is currently a family medicine resident at UMass Chan Medical School.


Harry Reyes Nieva received a Hope Scholarship in 2021 as a fourth-year Ph.D. student in biomedical informatics at Columbia University and a visiting predoctoral research fellow at Harvard Medical School.  Harry is expected to graduate in 2024.


2022

Christopher George, M.D., received a Hope scholarship as a fourth-year medical student at the State University of New York, Downstate, and Columbia University.  He is currently a resident at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York.


Rebecca Louisthelmy received a Hope scholarship as a first-year Ph.D. student at the University of Maryland College Park. Rebecca is a graduate research assistant at the University of Maryland and expects to graduate


Christina Pierre received a Hope scholarship while a pre-med undergraduate student at Boston University’s Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences majoring in behavior and health, and minoring in biology. Christina is a research assistant in the Department of Pediatrics StreetCred program at Boston Medical Center.