NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana State University Health Shreveport (LSUHS) School of Medicine and Dillard University have established a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for the Guaranteed Interview Program at LSU.
The MOU represents the objective of each institution to increase the number of African American and Latinx students from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) in Louisiana who apply to the LSU Health Shreveport School of Medicine. The Guaranteed Interview Program certifies that Dillard University students who meet specified criteria included in the MOU will be invited to interview with the admissions committee of the LSU Health Shreveport School of Medicine.
The MOU will be effective July 1, 2021 and shall remain in effect until terminated by either Party. “LSU Health Shreveport is committed to increasing the number of underrepresented students attending and graduating from our medical school. We are working diligently to provide a clear pathway to accomplish that goal,” stated Dr. David Lewis, dean of the LSUHS School of Medicine and interim chancellor. Pre-health advisor and coordinator of summer programs and grants at Dillard, Tracie Thomas, shared similar sentiments. “This MOU also signifies LSU Shreveport School of Medicine’s commitment through their Office of Diversity Affairs to enhancing the diversity of its admissions pool by intentionally considering qualified student applicants from our state’s HBCUs,” she said. In 2019, Dillard students attended LSUHS’s HBCU Educational Conference and the MOU will further the LSUHS and Dillard commitment to progressive opportunities for Black and Latinx scholars.
“This MOU is another indication to our pre-health students that we are committed to establishing opportunities that provide them access to medical schools so that they are one step closer to realizing their dreams of becoming doctors,” Dr. Yolanda Page, vice president for academic affairs said in a statement.
LSU Health Shreveport is home to the only medical school in north Louisiana and one of only three in the state. Medical students interact with patients from their very first semester and learn from a combination of lectures, small groups, standardized patient exercises and clinical skills throughout their training. For information about this partnership, please contact Lisa S. Babin, executive director of communication and public affairs at LSUHS (Lisa.babin@lsuhs.edu), Lauren Fox, communications specialist at Dillard University (lfox@dillard.edu) or Eddie Francis, Dillard’s director of communications and marketing (efrancis@dillard.edu).
