• Press Release

Scholar-Athlete Summit at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai: An Invitation to Athletes With SWAG

Encouraging young athletes, especially from underrepresented groups, to consider careers in science and medicine

  • New York, NY
  • (May 30, 2019)

Junior high, high school, and college students with SWAG are invited to the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai for the first NYC Scholar-Athlete Summit on Saturday, June 22, 2019.  SWAG stands for “Scholar-athletes With Academic Goals” who are interested in learning about careers as scientists or health care professionals.

“Science and medicine are increasingly becoming team sports. The challenges of tomorrow will be solved by diverse members working together. Thus, diversity in biomedical education is an enormously important priority at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai,” says Reginald W. Miller, DVM, Dean for Research Operations and Infrastructure, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.  “The SWAG Summit represents an opportunity to begin a discussion as to why athletes make good doctors. We want to inspire and encourage young athletes, particularly black and Latino students who are underrepresentated in medicine.”    

Who should attend? Students, parents, academic advisors, coaches, educators, and athletic/health admistrators. Those who wish to attend can register online.  The event will cover the following:

  • How your experience as an athlete puts you in a unique position for a career in science and/or medicine
  • Introduction to pipeline programs that enhance academic preparedness
  • Discussions by a panel of speakers and meeting participants including scholar-athletes who are students, scientists, physicians, nurses, athletic trainers, administrators, etc.

The Icahn School of Medicine has announced several new initiatives to drive diversity in science and medicine, including its Enhanced Scholarship Initiative, which offers substantial debt relief for students with demonstrated financial need. The initiative seeks to address disparities among students from disadvantaged backgrounds who are interested in medicine but unable to afford the hefty price tag of medical school.

Last summer, the school established an institutional partnership with the U.S. Navy to streamline a pathway for servicemembers, another key group the school hopes to welcome. The naval partnership is a product of the Icahn School of Medicine’s popular FlexMed program, which offers early assurance to college sophomores from any academic area of study including biomedical sciences, the humanities and social sciences, and computational sciences and engineering. The program also exempts students from some traditional pre-med requirements and from taking the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT).

DATE: Saturday, June 22

TIME: 8:30 am: Registration and breakfast; 9:30 am – 3 pm: Program. Lunch served.

PLACE: The Hess Center for Science and Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, 1470 Madison Avenue, New York, NY

REGISTER: www.icahn.mssm.edu/scholarathletesummit


About the Mount Sinai Health System

Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with more than 43,000 employees working across eight hospitals, over 400 outpatient practices, nearly 300 labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time — discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.

Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. We are consistently ranked by U.S. News & World Report's Best Hospitals, receiving high "Honor Roll" status, and are highly ranked: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Rehabilitation, and Urology. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked No. 12 in Ophthalmology. U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital among the country’s best in several pediatric specialties.

For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on FacebookTwitter and YouTube.