Dantwan Smith Elected to the Student National Medical Association's Board of Directors

The announcement was made during the 2016 SNMA Annual Medical Education Conference recently held in Austin. According to SNMA, the conference is the largest gathering of underrepresented minority medical students in the nation.

Smith was groomed for his current position as he was a 2014-2015 fellow for the SNMA Future Leadership Project (FLP). The fellowship is designed to recruit and mentor the next generation of SNMA leaders. Members who participate in the program have the opportunity to develop leadership skills, receive mentorship from SNMA leaders and engage in personal growth. The FLP curriculum includes attending lecture series given by physician leaders in medicine, group projects and mentorship by a national officer. Smith, a native of Columbus, MS, is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., as well as an American Medical Student Association Health Equity Scholar. He aspires to be an anesthesiologist.

About SNMA

The SNMA works to increase the number of clinically excellent, culturally competent, and socially conscious physicians. Founded in 1964 by medical students from Howard University College of Medicine and Meharry Medical College, the Student National Medical Association (SNMA) is the nation’s oldest and largest, independent, student-run organization focused on the needs and concerns of medical students of color.  Organized with chapters across the nation, the SNMA membership includes over 7,000 medical students, pre-medical students and physicians.  SNMA is dedicated to increasing the number of African-American, Latino, and other students of color entering and completing medical school and to assisting in the eradication of racial and ethnic health disparities.  SNMA community service and mentoring programs provide science appreciation, health care education, mentoring, and academic enrichment to elementary, junior high school, high school and college students interested in pursuing health-related careers.