OREANDA-NEWS. August 08, 2016. With proud conversation filling the room and banquet tables brimming with brunch items, a nearly 50-foot line formed from the double doors of the ballroom all the way to the bottom stairs of the stage. No, this wasn’t the line for breakfast. It was 24 Denver-area students waiting in line to receive their Diversity Scholarship Award from Kaiser Permanente.

For 11 consecutive years, Kaiser Permanente Colorado has awarded scholarships to well-deserving, underserved Denver-area students who are planning to pursue careers in health care. On Friday, August 5, Kaiser Permanente’s Diversity & Inclusion Department and Multicultural Business Resource Groups celebrated the 11th anniversary of the Diversity Scholarship Program by awarding 24 Kaiser Permanente Diversity Scholars with financial scholarships.

a bunch of logos and infographics on this one big posterboard

The effect the past 11 years of Diversity Scholarships have had in Colorado.

The 2016 Diversity Scholarship Award Recipients

  • Rebekah Acosta
  • Beatriz Avelar
  • Eric Azua
  • Amalia Bustillos-Saucedo
  • Cynthia Cerna-Gayton
  • Eliser Chaparro
  • Omar Coronado-Garcia
  • Danielle Edwards
  • Abena Gyimah
  • Kasey Jones
  • Clare Livingston
  • Itzel Martinez
  • Safa Mechergui
  • Haraz Mohd Reza
  • Filiberto Morales
  • Mikias Negussie
  • Than Nguyen
  • Alexandra Pough
  • Howe Qiu
  • Sebastian Ramos-Seguel
  • Myra Sendelweck
  • Asni Solomon
  • Mi Than
  • Yen Vu
Education reporter, Nelson Garcia from 9 News was the master of ceremonies for the 11th annual Diversity Scholarship Awards Breakfast.

Kaiser Permanente’s Diversity & Inclusion Department and Multicultural Business Resource Groups developed the Diversity Scholarship Program as a community outreach effort to financially assist minorities pursuing an education in health care or public health. The goal is to address the shortage of diverse health care leaders by focusing on the future delivery of health care equity and service.

Kaiser Permanente Colorado also partners with the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Office of Diversity and Inclusion to prepare students for careers related to health care through the Undergraduate Pre-Health Program.

The Office of Inclusion and Outreach has partnered with Kaiser Permanente for nearly a decade in sustaining the Undergraduate Pre-Health Program (UPP) — a program designed to offer students from underrepresented backgrounds the opportunity to work in research, both clinical and scientific, alongside health care professionals.

The Undergraduate Pre-Health Program Student of The Year award is designated to a student based on leadership qualities, class participation, volunteering efforts, relationships and attendance. This year the decision to select one student for this recognition was too difficult to make with so many qualified applicants so four students received this year’s award. The 2016 Undergraduate Pre-Health Program Student of The Year awards went to:

  • David Burns
  • America Elias
  • Alex Ho
  • Tara Mather

Congratulations to our 24 Kaiser Permanente Diversity Scholarship recipients and the four Undergraduate Pre-Health Program Student of The Year award recipients!