The University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville is inspired by its mission to prepare physicians committed to improving the health and wellness of their families and their communities. We are also inspired by our vision to cultivate a culture of curiosity and commitment to others to transform the health and wellness of communities. It is with great honor that we can recognize UofSC SOMG medical students who are displaying and executing each of these guiding principles.
A current third-year medical student at the UofSC SOMG, Joel Burt-Miller recently gained admission to the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health to pursue a Master of Public Health degree in Health Policy. Joel also received the prestigious Zuckerman Fellowship through the Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership.
Zuckerman Fellows are selected based on outstanding leadership ability with potential for significant impact to advance the public good, commitment to public service, intellectual distinction, and academic achievement. The fellowship will provide Joel with a Full-tuition scholarship, health care fees, and a living stipend for the year. Additionally, the fellowship provides a comprehensive co-curricular leadership development program engaging with mentors and highly accomplished leaders who will enhance his ability to impact the communities he will one-day serve.
As a future physician-leader, Joel seeks to connect the inequitably resourced with all they may need to live a holistically healthy life. Overall, he seeks to be an advocate, serving and healing individuals and whole communities locally and globally.
In response to his recent achievement, Joel explains, “I sought to complement my medical training and pursue further studies in the analysis of health policy design, implementation, and evaluation, with the goal of one-day influencing policies and practices that will improve access to high-quality health care, especially for communities who need it the most.”
After graduating from the MPH program, Joel will return to finish his final year of medical school followed by applying to residency training in a primary care specialty. Joel shares that in his future endeavors, he seeks to serve first as a physician and then as a medical director within a federally qualified health center/community health center, providing community-based primary care and wrap-around social services for underserved populations.
Joel shares, “It is my goal that these grounding experiences will prepare me to continue scaling up my work as a city or state level health officer, as I strive to improve access to high-quality integrated care for the inequitably resourced through innovative policies and programs.”
The UofSC SOMG is beyond proud of Joel Burt-Miller! We are thrilled to recognize and support him throughout his current and future endeavors.