April 29, 2021
Whitney Stuard, a sixth-year MD/PhD student in the Medical Scientist Training Program at UT Southwestern Medical School (UT Southwestern), received the 2021 Texas Medical Association Medical Student Section (TMA-MSS) Student of the Year Award. TMA’s House of Delegates policymaking body announced Ms. Stuard’s award today during TexMed, TMA’s annual conference, held virtually.
“The
members of TMA have been upholding a commitment to health care, leadership,
professionalism, and service for many years,” said Ms. Stuard, of Dallas. “I am truly honored to be placed in the ranks of
those past honorees from the Medical Student Section.”
Tanooha
Veeramachaneni, a fellow UT Southwestern student who nominated Ms. Stuard,
said, “The passion and sincerity she brings to every project inspires others,
like myself, to dream bigger and aim higher.”
Medical student
Sarah Miller, president of the TMA-MSS, called Ms. Stuard “a standout among the
TMA student community.”
Ms. Stuard joined
TMA in 2015. She also is a member of TEXPAC, TMA’s political action committee,
and serves on its Candidate Evaluation Committee, and has served on the TEXPAC Board
of Directors. Ms. Stuard also is a delegate representing her region in the American
Medical Association (AMA) Medical Student Section.
She is co-president
of the TMA medical student chapter at UT Southwestern, as well as medical
student outreach leader. Ms. Stuard serves as a peer counselor and teaches her
fellow students how to draft resolutions to propose policy changes at TMA and
AMA.
Tina Zhu, one
of the UT Southwestern students Ms. Stuard mentors, said, “She is highly
committed to making a difference in medicine through both advocacy and policy,
and will no doubt be a leader in the future.”
Ms. Stuard is
active in the Dallas County Medical Society, serving as a member of its board
of directors. She also helped expand opportunities for other medical students
to serve on the society’s boards, councils, and committees.
“I am overjoyed
my work in policy, education, and advocacy has made a positive difference for
others,” Ms Stuard said. “I hope through my work to inspire other
students, so they too can make a difference.”
While at UT
Southwestern, Ms. Stuard also has developed programs to aid the local
community. She created a hepatitis B screening program for people in
underserved areas of Dallas, and secured a grant to develop a web-based STEM
course to empower local high school students to pursue their interests in
science, technology, engineering, and math.
Ms. Stuard graduated
summa cum laude from The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) in 2015 with a bachelor’s
degree in biological sciences. She is enrolled in the UT-PACT Program, which is
a combined seven-year UTD/UTSW medical program. Ms. Stuard is a member of the UT
Southwestern class of 2023.
Since 1998,
TMA-MSS has recognized an outstanding student member who excels in furthering
the section’s goals and policies to improve Texas’ health care system. The
chapter aims to engage students in organized medicine by encouraging their
involvement in local county medical societies, TMA, and AMA.
TMA is the largest state medical
society in the nation, representing more than 55,000 physician and medical
student members. It is located in Austin and has 110 component county medical
societies around the state. TMA’s key objective since 1853 is to improve the
health of all Texans.
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TMA
Contacts: Brent Annear (512) 370-1381; cell:
(512) 656-7320
Marcus Cooper (512) 370-1382; cell:
(512) 650-5336
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