18 students named Schweitzer fellows
Eighteen McGovern Medical School students have been accepted to the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship class of 2023-24.
Panayiotis D. Kontoyiannis, Madilyn Feik, Sanjay Neerukonda, William Lavercombe, Sana Khan, Breanna Alonzo, Courtney Huynh, Mary Li, Bryana Stigers, Amira Bajracharya, Niveya James, Preethi Kannan, Saloni Kumar, Kumail Mahesri, Maddie Aycock, Erika Fanous, and Nisha Gupta and Preethi Kannan, both MD/MPH students, comprise the McGovern cohort. There are 66 fellows in the 2023-24 class.
This was the fellowship program’s most competitive cycle, with applications up by 20 percent.
“We believe it will be our strongest class yet and can’t wait to start with them,” said Andrea Link, MD, executive director of the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship Houston-Galveston.
Fellows partner with local community-based organization to develop yearlong service projects to address unmet health needs for underserved populations. Each fellow will be assigned to a public health mentor, who will provide one-on-one guidance and be connected with population-specific experts and skill-building sessions. Upon completion of their year, Fellows become Fellows for Life and join a network of Schweitzer alumni who are skilled in, and committed to, addressing the health needs of underserved people.
The recent graduating class of McGovern Fellows includes Brandon Sarver, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Geena May, Isabel Kilroy, Jahnvi Jain, Mallika Tripathy, Miguel Bonilla Moreno, Myra Kurjee, Nikita Ghosh, Patricia Marie Guzman, Sanjna Tripathy and Tanaya Pampattiwar.
Launched in 2008, the ASFHG is funded by private donations, the support of charitable foundations, and academic institution sponsorships. The organization is “dedicated to training the next generation of professionals to serve and empower vulnerable people to build healthier communities and live healthier lives.” For more information, see http://www.asfhg.org