131 South Robertson Street
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone 504-988-7401
Fax 504-988-6462
bhorne1@tulane.edu
Bennetta is the Assistant Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and the Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs. She completed her undergraduate studies at Xavier University of Louisiana and her graduate work at LSU Health Sciences Center. She is responsible for fostering an all-inclusive environment for current and prospective students from traditionally underrepresented populations. These populations include not only groups who identify through race but also through religious beliefs, sexual identity, as well as other non-traditional students. The Office of Multicultural Affairs will also work to increase cultural sensitivity of the student body, faculty, and staff as well as to enhance the retention and academic success of all students.
131 South Robertson Street
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone 504-988-5456
jvalentindiaz@tulane.edu
Jorge is the Senior Program Coordinator for the Office of Multicultural Affairs. He completed his undergraduate and graduate studies at the University of Central Florida. He is excited for every opportunity he has to advance initiatives around Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at Tulane and the School of Medicine. He also strives to be a part of making Tulane a community where all can succeed and thrive.
BY YONIS HAKIM & YOUSEF HAKIM
Students (T1s, T2s, and T3s), professors, attendings, fellows, and researchers attended the Dinner Party on Saturday, the 17th, in Murphy’s Leone Center for Eid. This was one of the first Eid dinners to be approved by TUSOM. Eid is the time after the month of Ramadan, during which Muslims celebrate the completion of fasting Ramadan. They enjoy visiting family, friends, and members of the community and share delicious meals and gifts to spread happiness and foster a close-knit community, whose goodness spreads far. They also start this lovely occasion by giving charity to the poor.
This dinner was graciously approved by Ms. Bennetta Horne, the Director of TUSOM’s Office of Multicultural Affairs, upon receiving the suggestion of a T1 student, Yonis Hakim. Mr. Jordan Bradford, the Executive Administrative Assistant to the Dean's Office, courteously helped the T1 student in arranging the authentic food for the event and coordinating the event to be a smooth and lovely one.
During the dinner, students and faculty of different ways of life and stages in their career development came together to build bridges and learn more about their fellow colleagues’ way of life. They also shared their colleague’s joys and meaningful moments in a celebration of inclusion and understanding. The dinner exemplified the kind sentiment of Eid of sharing blessings of delicious food with family, friends, and the community. Indeed, not only students and faculty enjoyed the authentic delicacies of this grand dinner, but also much-appreciated staff of the TUSOM community, such as the custodial services staff and the security, whose significant work is dearly valued and respected. Gratitude is a part of Ramadan and Eid, and we hope that gratitude that is due to TUSOM at large has been shown, and we are thankful for the Office of Multicultural Affairs for making this dinner possible. Eid Mubarak!
BY ANDY RIVERA
This year, we held the 10th annual Latino Medical Student Association Conference, hosted at Tulane School of Medicine. Each year, we decide on a theme for the conference and this year’s theme was: “Es Tiempo de Cambiar: The importance of Diversity in Medicine”. Our conference is a 3 day conference, beginning with high school days, focused on introducing the field of medicine to high school students, through workshops, physician panels and interactive lectures. The second day was geared towards medical students, with special events that included discussions over current issues in medicine, SIM center sessions, resident/attending panels of various specialties and more. The final day is where we elect new regional board members, through the participation of regional chapter members from the southwest region.
Every aspect of the conference went smoothly, and really could not have asked for a better turnout. There were many hands on deck from our local regional chapter members (Tulane and LSU), in addition to those who were able to make it, which included our regional board members and other regional chapter members. We were fortunate to have the support of so many residents and faculty members throughout the day, all of which helped to make the conference the success that it was. In all, we hope this conference helped to inspire high school students to pursue a career in medicine, and our pre-med and medical students in a way that will benefit their future. We also thank our residents and faculty members for their time throughout the day, and we hope that this experience will encourage them to continue on the path of mentorship.
BY MICHELLE LEMIEUX
This article appeared in the November/December 2021 issue of Diversity in Action.
JUST TWO MONTHS AGO, NEW ORLEANS WAS breaking through from Hurricane Ida. Dealing with massive power outages, Tulane University School of Medicine was back on its feet within a couple of weeks, and the rest of the city soon followed.
Described as “small but mighty” by Dr. Diane Blake, co-director of the Biomedical Science Graduate Program and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the university, rising to the occasion is a symbol of the commitment, dedication and resilience Tulane brings to its students.
The Biomedical Science Graduate Program (BMS), which Blake has run for the last six years, takes an interdisciplinary approach to graduate education and research, allowing students to customize their experiences as they move forward in their careers. Offering 18 different master’s degrees and a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences, the program offers candidates the ability to not just be collaborative and innovative, but creative. Click to read the entire "From Bench to Bedside" article as a PDF.
David McIntosh, PhD, MA
Vice President, Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer
Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
October 15, 2019
Tulane University School of Medicine (TUSOM) values diversity. Tulane defines diversity broadly to include: persons of color, members of the LGBTQIA community, members of diverse ethnic groups including those typically underrepresented in medicine, members of economically disadvantaged groups, and any others who bring a different perspective to the learning environment. The school of medicine believes in a rich educational experience for all students through the infusion of cultural competency, sensitivity, and attentiveness. Additionally, the school of medicine values the sum total of ideals and perspectives of all individuals engaged in and connected to the educational process.
The vision of the TUSOM is to cultivate an environment of inclusiveness and equity for the learning community. These efforts will promote social justice throughout the medical education community, diminishing the occurrences of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or ability. This effort will generate conscientious global citizens primed to provide vital medical care to the diverse population in southeastern Louisiana and around the globe, thus advancing health equity.
