........................................................................................................................................................................................

Everyone knows the old saying Put your money where your mouth is, but few live up to it.

That is not the case at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, where faculty members regularly reach into their own pockets to support an annual scholarship program.

This year, La Tierra Sagrada Society the fundraising arm of the School of Medicine is more than doubling its scholarship support for medical students, to just under $100,000. Behind the effort is the desire to help deserving students make it through medical school and one day hopefully apply their knowledge and skills caring for New Mexico patients in need.

La Tierra Sagrada The Sacred Earth Society has chosen 12 students from the class of 2015 for its 2014 merit scholarships. Chief among them is Sean Peterson, who will receive the Dean Endowed Scholarship Award of $15,000.

I believe in the role of disease prevention, long-lasting relationships, and the power of communication in healing, Peterson said, providing a brief glimpse into his personal philosophy of medicine. Im eager to practice family medicine and hope to work in underserved areas, where I feel the most good can be done.

Peterson has served as a volunteer medical Spanish language interpreter. He spent his third-year rotations polishing his grasp of Spanish at such local clinics as the Young Childrens Health Center, Clinica One Hope, and the Albuquerque Opportunity Center. He also tutors for the Clinical Applications of Spanish in Allied Health class at the School of Medicine.

The other 11 scholarship recipients will all get $7,500. They are Kwasi Addae-Mensah, Lauren Coleman, Richard Collier, Alyssa Dye, Jamie MacArthur, Heidi Overton, Kaitlin Petranovich, Jessie Rodgers, Sophia Stroud, Felicia Taylor and Anna Vesting.

Last year, La Tierra Sagrada presented five students all women a total of $45,000 in scholarships.

Dr. Paul Roth, dean of the School of Medicine, established La Tierra Sagrada in 1996. Since then, it has awarded worthy students more than $750,000. The society is supported by about 70 UNM medical school alumni, faculty and staff members, along with non-affiliated community members. It also gets financial assistance from corporate members Tricore Reference Laboratories and UNM Health System, with matching gifts from Merrill Lynch & Co. and Ricci, Porch & Co.

Link:
Society boosts scholarships for med students