In a year when few things have gone as planned, the AT&T Foundation made sure that the second annual (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) HBCU Educational Conference hosted by LSU Health Shreveport would be possible. They did so through awarding a $25,000 AT&T Aspire grant to the LSU Health Shreveport Foundation. The AT&T Aspire Grant is directed to student investment and will be used to support students attending historically black colleges and universities in Louisiana who are exploring career paths in medicine, research and allied health professions through attendance of the 2020 LSU Health Shreveport Virtual HBCU Educational Conference.
As a component of a comprehensive strategy to recruit more students from priority populations, the LSUHS Office of Diversity Affairs instituted HBCU Day in 2019. The inaugural event, held over two days, garnered over fifty attendees who were interested in learning more about the School of Medicine, School of Allied Health Professions or School of Graduate Studies at LSU Health Shreveport.
This year’s event is scheduled for November 13 and 14 and will provide insight on curriculum, learning environment, admissions process, financial aid, summer research opportunities, mentoring programs, campus culture, and the student experience. Sixty-eight students from Grambling, Southern University (Baton Rouge, and New Orleans), Xavier and Dillard will be participating in this virtual event.
“We are proud to support the work being done at LSU Health Shreveport through their HBCU Day to engage with students who are underrepresented in medical fields and encourage them to pursue careers as health professionals,” said Robert F. Vinet, Regional Director, AT&T Louisiana. “LSU Health Shreveport is a leader across the region, and their work to cultivate diversity in the medical field is important to success across all communities.”
