Established in 1968, the Office of Diversity assists with the mission of recruiting, counseling, and nurturing a diverse student body. The office provides counseling services to help students adjust to medical school and guidance concerning future career choices. In addition, the office is actively engaged in multiple pipeline programs for students from high school to recent college graduates.
The Office of Diversity supports multicultural student organizations which provide a forum for student participation in campus affairs, student recruitment, social events, and service activities in the local community. Through these activities, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons enjoys tremendous diversity throughout its student body, distinct faculty, and patient population.
"Columbia’s Location in New York City and numerous affiliates provide a certain richness of culture and ethnicity which is reflected in the way medicine is taught at P&S." - Kimberly A. Forde
MEET OUR STAFF
Dr. Hilda Hutcherson, M.D.
Associate Dean, Office of Diversity
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Damaris Javier, M.A. As the Director, Mrs. Javier coordinates P&S diversity recruitment efforts, coordinates the Annual Multicultural Recruitment Day Conference (MRDC), the David Ta-Keng Huang Memorial Scholarship, and provides support services to the current underrepresented and the Black and Latino Students Organization (BALSO) students at P&S. She also serves as the director for programs such as the State Pre-College Enrichment Program (S-PREP), Summer Medical and Dental Education Program (SMDEP), the Northeast Regional Alliance MedPrep Program (MedPrep), Summer Public Health Scholars Program (SPHSP), and the Strategic Testing Application Techniques Program (STAT); she directly serves as the Program Coordinator for the S-PREP and STAT program. These programs are all designed to increase the number of underrepresented minorities and economically disadvantaged students in medical or health professions. "A journey of a thousand miles starts with one step." - Chinese Proverb |
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Samantha McLaughlin As the Program Coordinator, Ms. McLaughlin coordinates SMDEP and MedPrep programs. “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma- which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” -Steve Jobs |
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Daniel Carrión, MPH As the Program Coordinator, Mr. Carrión coordinates SPHSP. "There are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt." - Audre Lorde "Students must have initiative; they should not be mere imitators. They must learn to think and act for themselves - and be free." - César Chávez |
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Lennith Santos Administrative Assistant ls2312@columbia.edu As the Administrative Assistant, Ms. Santos provides administrative support to Dr. Hilda Hutcherson, BALSO, MRDC, SMDEP, MedPrep, SPHSP and S-PREP. "Success is not measured by what you accomplish but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds." |
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Ms. Saavedra serves as the Program Assistant for the S-PREP and MedPrep programs. Additionally, Ms. Saavedra provides support to the Office of Diversity and other programs.
“Perhaps some day I’ll crawl back home, beaten, defeated. But not as long as I can make stories out of my heartbreak, beauty out of sorrow.” - Sylvia Plath, The Unabridged Journals
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