About the California Medicine Scholars Program

The California Medicine Scholars Program (CMSP) seeks to reduce health disparities for communities of color in California by increasing the diversity of primary care physicians who are trained and ultimately practice in the state.

The CMSP is a supported student pre-med pathway. CMSP will be organized through Regional Hubs of Healthcare Opportunity (RHHOs) and will include community colleges, 4-year public and private universities, community-based health clinics and organizations, and medical schools. Cross-sector collaboration will be the foundation of the RHHOs in efforts to provide students with tailored support systems and healthcare focused extracurricular experiences.

If you are a current community college student who is interested or might be interested in entering a pre-med pathway, complete our interest form below to learn more about our program and steps to apply.

Student Interest Form

Designing A Solution For California’s Physician Shortage Crisis

Since 2016, the founding advisory board has convened and drawn on the expertise of its over 300 stakeholders and supporters to design the CMSP and its Regional Hub of Healthcare Opportunity operating model. The primary contributors to the California Medicine Scholars Program design reflect the diversity of California’s regions, healthcare institutions, community-based non-profits and postsecondary institutions:

  • Association of American Indian Physicians
  • Butte-Glenn Community College District
  • California Community Colleges Health Workforce Initiative
  • The California Pan-Ethnic Health Network (CPEHN)
  • California Law, Inc.
  • The California Primary Care Association
  • Central Valley Higher Education Consortium
  • Charles Drew University
  • DeepTok
  • Dignity Health
  • Empowering Pacific Islander Communities (EPIC)
  • Foothill College
  • Laney College
  • Latinx Physicians of California
  • Peralta Community College District
  • Solano College
  • Stanford University School of Medicine
  • University of California, Davis, College of Biological Sciences
  • University of California, Davis, School of Medicine
  • University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine
  • University of California, Merced
  • University of California, Office of the President
  • University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine
  • University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
  • University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine
  • University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine
  • Women’s Foundation of California

Coalition Leadership

The California Medicine Scholars Program was initially developed by an Advisory Board and partners with the Foundation for California Community Colleges as the fiscal sponsor and managing agency.

FOUNDING Advisory Board

  • Coyness L. Ennix, Jr., MD, FACS (Chairman of the Board), Board of Trustees, Meharry Medical College
  • Jane Binger, EdD, Co-Founder, DeepTok, Diplomat, UC Merced Foundation, Senior Advisor, Stanford School of Medicine, COEDME, Member-Elect, Board of Governors, Stanford Medicine Alumni Association
  • Nathan Cox, MBA, Senior Vice President and Chief Lending Officer, Travis Credit Union
  • Tom Epstein, JD, Member, California Community Colleges Board of Governors
  • Ronald Garcia, PhD, Assistant Dean Emeritus, Stanford School of Medicine, Center of Excellence and Diversity in Medical School Education (COEDME)
  • Mark Henderson, MD, FACP, Professor, Internal Medicine, Vice Chair of Education, Associate Dean of Admissions, UC Davis, School of Medicine
  • Ramon Hernandez, DrPH, MPH, Project Director, Hispanic Center of Excellence (HCOE), Project Director, Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP), UC San Diego, School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics
  • Arianna Morales, MA, Improvement Initiatives Director, Marcus Foster Education Institute
  • Thuy Thi Nguyen, JD, President, Foothill College
  • Daniel Pellegrini, MD, MMM, Medical Director of Senior Surgical Care at Kaiser Permanente San Francisco
  • Nicole Stern, MD, FACP, Staff Physician, Sansum Clinic, Inc., Santa Barbara, CA; Assistant Professor, Dept. of Medical Education, California University of Science and Medicine, Colton, CA
  • Linda Zorn, RD, MA FAWHP, Senior Advisor Health Sector Workforce Development, Upskill California and Executive Director of Economic and Workforce Development, Butte-Glenn Community College District

Staff

  • Rowena A. Robles, PhD, Executive Director
  • Jessica Garcia, MS, Program Specialist
  • Kaitlin Jackson, EdD, Associate Director
  • Alejandra Navarro, MS, Communications Manager
  • Sos Nazaryan, MA, Manager, Research and Data
  • Vincent Richardson, PhD, Associate Director, Research and Evaluation

Contact Us

info@california-medicine.org