Initiatives & Events
Education
Diversity Week
Diversity week is a weeklong event coordinated by USA every autumn at the beginning of the year for incoming first year medical students. During diversity week, we showcase the variety of student organizations and identities that make up the unique coalition that is USA. Each group within USA hosts a welcome lunch and presentation about their group, as a way to educate the new class and recruit new student members. Diversity week is a celebration of the various student identities at AMC and provides a platform for USA groups to be visible.
Allyship Initiative Series
The Allyship Initiative Series was launched after USA hosted a panel on the topic of allyship in Fall, 2019. The panel was comprised of medical professionals from underrepresented backgrounds who spoke about how individuals who do not share their identities can best be allies to them. This event highlighted the need for further education events surrounding allyship in medicine. In response to this, USA created a series revolving around allyship, which is comprised of two educational workshops and many sets of listening circles. For USA's list of allyship resources used in this series, click here.
3rd Annual Diversity in Medicine Conference
The 3rd Annual Diversity in Medicine Conference took place on Saturday, March 6th, 2021. It was hosted virtually by medical students at the University of Michigan Medical School. The theme was Enacting Change: The Physician's Role in Social Justice, Diversity, and Intersectionality. The Diversity in Medicine Executive Board invited you to submit abstracts broadly related to increasing diversity among healthcare providers.
Advocacy
Pronoun Name Badges
In coordination with MSPA, USA worked with the student affairs department at the college to develop name badges with gender pronouns on them, to make AMC more inclusive of transgender, gender nonconforming, and gender non-binary people. Including pronouns is a first step toward respecting people’s gender identity, working against cisnormativity, and creating a more welcoming space for people of all genders and gender identities.
Diversity Chair on Student Council
USA has advocated strongly for the creation of a new, voting position on the AMC student council that functions to represent and communicate the needs of underrepresented students at Albany Med. By creating a chair solely dedicated to the collective perspectives of underrepresented voices, Student Council will be providing:
An infrastructural protection for underrepresented voices, despite the identities of other elected officials
An objective, public, and strong commitment to supporting the voices and needs of underrepresented identities
A push towards equity, by insurance of underrepresented voices consistently at the table
A National message to incoming students that diversity is valued at the institutional level
Community
USA Ice Cream Social
The USA Ice Cream Social is held during orientation in the fall, to introduce new students to USA and the various groups within it. During the last ice cream social, 240 people were in attendance.
USA Welcome Barbecue Mixer
The USA welcome barbecue mixer is held at the end of orientation in the fall, and provides new students an opportunity to meet and mingle with representatives from USA groups. Last year, 106 people attended the USA welcome barbecue mixer.