Overview: Ujima, Inc., a local nonprofit organization, will celebrate 12 years of awarding scholarships to over 80 African American medical students on May 17. The event will be hosted at the Immanuel Praise Fellowship Church and will highlight how these students have overcome obstacles to enter medical school and address health disparities impacting the Black community. The event will feature performances by Gospel and R&B singer Marlo Wells and include the presentation of engraved medical bags to the graduating Ujima Scholars.
Alyssah Hall
Each year Ujima, Inc., a local nonprofit organization, awards scholarships to Black medical school students.
On May 17, Ujima, Inc.will celebrate 12 years of awarding scholarships to over 80 African American medical students.
The Ujima Scholarship Fund has grown from initially funding African American medical students at Western University of Health Sciences, in Pomona, to including medical students at the University of California at Riverside, School of Medicine; California University of Science and Medicine in Colton; and the Doctoral pharmacy students at Keck Graduate Institute, in Claremont.
Ujima is a Swahili word that translates to “collective work and shared responsibility” and embodies the essence of community solidarity, according to the organization.
The event will be hosted at the Immanuel Praise Fellowship Church and members of the community are invited to join them in celebrating these dedicated and inspiring medical students, who have committed to work with their Black patients to help achieve health equity, when they enter their practices.
The event will highlight how these African American medical students successfully entered medical school, at times against all odds, and how they plan to address the long standing issue of health disparities impacting the Black community. Attendees will see the graduating Ujima Scholars receive their engraved medical bag, as they depart for their residency.
Gospel and R&B singer and songwriter Marlo Wells will perform at the event among other expected special guests from across the Inland Empire. Immanuel Praise Fellowship is located at 9592 7th Street in Rancho Cucamonga and the luncheon begins at 1:00 PM.
Ticket price is $65 and can be purchased at the Ujima website: www.UjimaScholarshipFund.org.
“At Ujima, Inc., we embrace this powerful concept to drive our mission of creating a legacy of health equity, ensuring that every individual has the opportunity to thrive through collective efforts and shared responsibilities. This guiding principle fuels our dedication to advancing health equity and building stronger, healthier communities together,” according to the Ujima website.