Have you ever wondered how we’re doing in promoting diversity? Today, results of an annual report were shared with the medical school’s Executive Committee, and through this article, we’d like to share it with you, too.
The University of Hawaiʻi is committed to creating a diverse workplace within the school. Dean Jerris Hedges, MD, believes faculty, staff and administrative leadership should reflect the ethnic diversity of our State.
How we are doing: Top ten in the U.S. for women faculty
The John A. Burns School of Medicine currently ranks #8 (tied) among 129 medical schools for its high percentage of female faculty. Of our 401 faculty members, 46% are women, with 54% men, according to the Association for American Medical Colleges. See the AAMC list based on 2013 data.
Staff diversity
Among the 100 people who make up staff (not including faculty), women lead at 67% with men at 33%.
School-wide diversity (employees)
School-wide, including all 501 faculty and staff, our employees are split evenly among women and men. The ethnic background of all employee, as they describe themselves, is:
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Mixed Race: 2%
Asian: 5&
Japanese: 29%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: 7%
Hispanic/Latino: 3%
Filipino: 5%
Chinese: 11%
White 36%
African American: 1%
Diversity among our MD students: this year’s entering class
One in five (20%) of the 70 student in the JABSOM entering MD Class of 2020 are the first in their families to attend college. Fifty-nine of the 70 are Hawaiʻi residents, with two from Hawaiʻi County and 1 from Maui County. The 11 non-residents in the MD 2020 class include nine from the continental U.S., one from Guam and one from Canada.
How our MD students were chosen
More than two thousand (2,457) would-be JABSOM students applied to enter the MD Class of 2020. 2165 of those applicants were non-residents; 292 were residents. Three hundred thirty six (336) students were interviewed, including 205 residents and 131 non-residents. The admissions committee selected those who were offered acceptance. Seventy students are in the MD Class. Eight aspiring MDs were selected for the 2016-2017 ʻImi Hoʻπla Post-Bacalaureate Program, a year-long medical school preparatory course from which they hope to earn admission at JABSOM in the MD Class of 2021.
JABSOM’s pipeline programs and admissions demonstrate substantial effort and committed resources aligned with its institutional-wide diversity policy.
To inspire more MD student applicants from diverse backgrounds, including the under priviledged,
JABSOM runs or contributes to multiple student diversity programs including the ʻImi Hoʻōla Post-Baccalaureate Program, the Area Health Education Center and the Health Careers Opportunity Program.
Summary
In our current Annual Diversity report, the working group reported that JABSOM’s strengths include significant percentages of first generation college students and women faculty. Challenges include the need to increase student recruitment from neighbor islands, Native Hawaiian, and other
Pacific Islander backgrounds.
Student and faculty diversity outcomes will continue to be tracked annually and opportunities to foster diversity are highlighted on the JABSOM diversity programs website.
JABSOM strives to meet its Institutional Diversity Statement:
The John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) embraces diversity and inclusion as part of our shared Hawaiian, Asian and Pacific values. These shared values are responsive to our unique location in the center of the Pacific. We uphold that an environment of inclusiveness, equal opportunity and respect for the similarities and differences in our communities advances our mission of education, research and innovation, community service and clinical healing. JABSOM is committed to preparing a culturally competent health and science workforce that meets the needs
of Hawaiʻi. We strive to reflect the demographics of Hawaiʻi, including representation of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, individuals from rural areas of Hawaiʻi, first generation college students and those from economically, socially, and educationally disadvantaged backgrounds. JABSOM is cultivating a transformative teaching and learning environment that promotes the recruitment and retention of students,faculty, and staff, who are representative of the diverse population of Hawaiʻi.
About the JABSOM Diversity Task Force
The annual report on JABSOM Diversity is produced by a working group which is led by Winona Kaʻalouahi Lee, MD, the medical school’s AAMC Diversity Officer. The working group also includes
Dr. Richard Kasuya, Co-Chair Diversity Task Force, Ms. Mālia Purdy, Department of Native Hawaiian Health, Dr. Ivy Nip Asano, Admissions, and Mr. Jeffery Long, Director of Human Resources.
By Tina Shelton.