LaShyra Nolen
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LaShyra "Lash" Nolen (born 1995) is an American medical student and science communicator. She is the first Black woman to become class president of the
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
. In 2020 Nolen was selected by ''
The Root "The Root" is a song by American recording artist D'Angelo. It is the eighth track on his second studio album, ''Voodoo'', which was released on January 25, 2000, by Virgin Records. "The Root" was recorded and produced by D'Angelo at New York's ...
'' as one of their Young Futurists.


Early life and education

Nolen was born in Compton, California. She grew up in Los Angeles and spent the later part of her childhood in Rancho Cucamonga. During her third grade of school, Nolen competed in a school science competition, where she studied the patterns of fish. After winning first place, Nolen told her grandmother that she either wanted to become a brain surgeon or an astronaut. She attended Los Osos high school where she served as class president all four years. Nolen attended
Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University (LMU) is a private Jesuit and Marymount research university in Los Angeles, California. It is located on the west side of the city near Playa Vista. LMU is the parent school to Loyola Law School, which is located ...
(LMU) where she studied health and human sciences. At LMU she served as the student body president and was involved in
voter registration In electoral systems, voter registration (or enrollment) is the requirement that a person otherwise eligible to vote must register (or enroll) on an electoral roll, which is usually a prerequisite for being entitled or permitted to vote. The r ...
programs. As part of her undergraduate research, Nolen created a diabetes management programme for women at a domestic violence shelter. She was the first member of her family to earn a bachelor's degree in science. Nolen was made a Fulbright scholar in 2017, and moved to
A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...
where she worked in public health. Her research involved understanding how Spanish people understood obesity. On her return, Nolen joined the AmeriCorps programme as a health coach at the Heartland Innovation Centre in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
. Here she led initiatives to improve clinic accessibility and improve awareness of health programmes. She started her medical degree at
Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...
in 2019. That year, Nolen became the first Black woman to be elected class president of the Harvard Medical School. Under her guidance, the medical school took part in more outreach programmes and recognised the work of non-academic members of the community. She is an activist for racial equality, and has spoken about the healthcare inequality experienced by Black people in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. In 2020 Nolen was selected by
The Root "The Root" is a song by American recording artist D'Angelo. It is the eighth track on his second studio album, ''Voodoo'', which was released on January 25, 2000, by Virgin Records. "The Root" was recorded and produced by D'Angelo at New York's ...
as one of their Young Futurists.


Research

Nolen has studied healthcare inequality in the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, with a particular focus on why ethnic minorities were so at-risk from
coronavirus disease Coronavirus diseases are caused by viruses in the coronavirus subfamily, a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, the group of viruses cause respiratory tract infections that can range from ...
. In the aftermath of the murders of
Ahmaud Arbery On February 23, 2020, Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, was murdered during a racially motivated hate crime while jogging in Satilla Shores, a neighborhood near Brunswick in Glynn County, Georgia.
and George Floyd, Nolen spoke up for Black people, saying that the graphic videos being shared on social media could be traumatising. Nolen has worked to eradicate racism from academic medicine and medical education. She has provided a series of guidance for clinicians, academics and medical educators, including encouraging people do their homework before reaching out to Black colleagues, reflecting on their workplaces and personal practise and compensating Black trainees for their time. Her June 2020
New England Journal of Medicine ''The New England Journal of Medicine'' (''NEJM'') is a weekly medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society. It is among the most prestigious peer-reviewed medical journals as well as the oldest continuously published one. His ...
perspective “How Medical Education Is Missing the Bull’s-eye”, summarised the failings of academic medical programmes at training a generation of non-biased physicians. During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
Nolen launched the We Got Us project, which looked to provide accurate information and support to the Boston community throughout the pandemic. In recognition of her public health efforts, she was invited to the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
equity round table. She is a regular contributor to
WBUR-FM WBUR-FM (90.9 FM) is a public radio station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Boston University. It is the largest of three NPR member stations in Boston, along with WGBH and WUMB-FM and produces several nationally distributed progra ...
and the
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.


Awards and honors

* 2017 Fulbright Scholar * 2020
The Root "The Root" is a song by American recording artist D'Angelo. It is the eighth track on his second studio album, ''Voodoo'', which was released on January 25, 2000, by Virgin Records. "The Root" was recorded and produced by D'Angelo at New York's ...
Young Futurist * 2021 Boston Celtics Hero Among Us * 2021 Racial Justice in Medicine Award * 2022
Forbes 30 Under 30 ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 is a set of lists of people under 30 years old issued annually by ''Forbes'' magazine and some of its regional editions. The American lists recognize 600 business and industry figures, with 30 selected in twenty industries ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nolen, LaShyra 1996 births Living people Science communicators Loyola Marymount University alumni Harvard Medical School people