October 25, 2007
Derek Jackson named 2007 Pisacano Scholar
Derek Jackson, a fourth-year UW medical student, has been named a 2007 Pisacano Scholar by the Pisacano Leadership Foundation, Inc. (PLF). The award is given to an outstanding medical student who has made a commitment to enter the specialty of family medicine.
Jackson graduated with honors from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts in Latin American Studies. He received the Creativity in Latin American Studies Award his senior year, which is given to the graduating student exhibiting the most innovative approach to his/her education with respect to course work, research and study abroad. His passion for the Latino community began as a child when he worked alongside immigrant workers on his parent’s dairy farm in southern Idaho. Since that time Jackson has served in many capacities in the Latino community. He spent two months in Peru and another two months in Mexico teaching English to Spanish-speaking natives. Jackson also completed an internship at a hospital in Peru and then served as a volunteer migrant outreach care coordinator in rural Idaho during a year away from his undergraduate education.
As a medical student, Jackson has continued his involvement with the Latino community. During his first year of medical school, he began the implementation of a project that would provide information to Latino men in Idaho about sexual safety and would assess which risk-taking practices needed to be addressed by local outreach programs. He has since presented his results to fellow students at UW, at the Western Student Medical Research Forum Conference in 2006, and to physicians and social workers in Idaho. He is now preparing to submit his research for publication. During his second year of medical school, Jackson completed a clerkship at a hospital in Guanajuato, Mexico. He was the first student sent by the UW to what is now an established program between the state of Guanajuato’s medical school and the UW School of Medicine.
Upon completion of residency, Jackson would like to return to Idaho and hopes to serve the diverse group of immigrants and rural populations in his home state. He doesn’t see his future in medicine as a job or career, but as a lifestyle choice based on passion and the opportunity to leave things better than he has found them.
The scholarships, valued at up to $28,000 each, are awarded to students attending U.S. medical schools who demonstrate a strong commitment to the specialty of family medicine. In addition, each applicant must show demonstrable leadership skills, superior academic achievement, strong communication skills, identifiable character and integrity, and a noteworthy level of community service. Since 1993, the PLF has selected 85 outstanding medical students. Approximately 1600 applicants representing more than 120 medical schools competed for these scholarships.
Each Pisacano Scholar received an endorsement from his or her medical school prior to being reviewed by the Selection Committee. The Selection Committee is comprised of the distinguished members of the PLF Board of Directors and over 300 participating family physicians. The Scholarship program provides educational programs, leadership training and funding for outstanding fourth-year medical students who have been identified as the future leaders in the field of family medicine.
The Pisacano Leadership Foundation, Inc. was created in 1990 by the American Board of Family Medicine in tribute to the founder and first executive director of the ABFM, Dr.Nicholas J. Pisacano. He is acknowledged around the world as one of the leaders in the effort to recognize family medicine as a major specialty. In 1969 the American Board of Family Medicine was designated as the sole agency responsible for the certification and recertification of family physicians.
