JEDI-WEST

DEI Champions

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DEI Champions

DEI Champions provide leadership and oversight of all aspects of DEI for their departments and serve as department representatives for the school’s DEI efforts. Learn more about their work by reading the profiles below.

  • Tara Lynn Humphrey, DO

    Tara Lynn Humphrey, DO

    Clinical Associate Professor of Anesthesiology (Clinician Educator)
    Director of Resident Simulation and Director of Cardiac Fellowship
    Department of Anesthesiology
    Vice Chair of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    tlhumphr@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Diversity Committee: support, evaluate, ideas
    • DEI Speaker Series
    • Mentoring URM residents, medical students, high school students
    • Upstander Training
    • Keeping department data

  • Nada Elbuluk, MD, MSc, FAAD

    Nada Elbuluk, MD, MSc, FAAD

    Associate Professor of Clinical Dermatology
    Director, Skin of Color & Pigmentary Disorders Program & Fellowship
    Director, Dermatology Diversity & Inclusion Program
    Department of Dermatology
    KSOM Director of Curriculum Equity
    Director, Dermatology Diversity and Inclusion Program
    nada.elbuluk@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Book Club
    • Community Service Programs
    • Diversity Scholar Series
    • Resident and Faculty DEI Training

    Visit our website to learn more: Dermatology Diversity & Inclusion

  • Mariana Martinez, MD

    Mariana Martinez, MD

    Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    Department of Emergency Medicine
    marianam@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Departmental presence at Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) Regional Conference, Student National Medical Association (SNMA) AMEC Conference, and National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA) Conference
    • DEI committee participation in faculty and resident recruitment
    • Resident and faculty microaggression discussions/training

  • Lisa Richardson, MD

    Lisa Richardson, MD

    Clinical Assistant Professor of Family Medicine
    Vice-Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Department of Family Medicine
    USC Student Health
    lisa.richardson@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Equity Enrichment based on Dr. Eddie Moore Jr’s 21-Day Racial Equity Habit Building Challenge ©, a self-guided, engaging activity to promote equity & understand power & privilege
    • Departmental climate survey & focus group analysis to inform strategic priorities for equity, inclusion & well-being goals and inform vision planning
    • DEIB scorecard collaboration with Departments of Medicine and OB-GYN: track progress of DEIB efforts and guide benchmarks and strategic goals
    • Restorative Practices and Mindset Trainings

  • Pragna Patel, PhD, MEd

    Pragna Patel, PhD, MEd

    Director of Instructional Practices and Curriculum
    Director, DEI for Biomedical Graduate Education
    Health and Biomedical Science Education
    Professor | Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine
    pragna@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Survey of URM students’ interests in supportive programming
    • Community-fostering and cultural events for students
    • URM student-led organization

  • Tea Jashashvili, MD, PhD

    Tea Jashashvili, MD, PhD

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck Medicine of USC
    Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    Member, Keck Executive Steering Committee for IRG
    tea.jashashvili@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • MS and PhD Students Travel to the Anatomy Connected Meeting organized by the American Association for Anatomy (AAA)
    • Creating Connections Through Clay: support creativity and strengthen bonds among students and faculty, fostering a more collaborative and inclusive environment.
    • Exploring Diversity Through Regional Cuisine
    • Invited Speaker for DEI Insights and DEI Speaker Series

  • Cathy Jalali, PhD

    Cathy Jalali, PhD

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Medical Education and Medicine
    Director of Faculty Development in Education
    Assistant Program Director, Internal Medicine Residency Training Program
    Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Department of Medical Education
    cjalali@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Health Justice and Systems of Care course: preclinical phase of the medical school curriculum & extended into the clerkship phase with a two week-course
    • Curriculum bias mitigation project: identify (potential for) bias and work with faculty to help actively explore issues of race, gender, and social determinants of health (amongst many others) in the medical school curriculum
    • Inaugural Keck Medical Education Conference (2023). Conference included a keynote address, Ensuring Equity in Medical School: Inside and Outside of the Classroom and a workshop on mitigating bias in medical education

  • Aneesah Smith, MD, FACP

    Aneesah Smith, MD, FACP

    Vice Chair Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
    Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine
    Chair, GME DEI Subcommittee
    Member, GEMS
    Member, Keck Executive Steering Committee for DEI
    Aneesah.smith@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Engagement with Resident Affinity Groups
    • Presence at regional and national minority conferences: Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) Regional Conference; Student National Medical Association (SNMA) AMEC Conference; National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA) Conference
    • Engagement with Resident Affinity Groups
    • Presence at regional and national minority conferences: Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) Regional Conference; Student National Medical Association (SNMA) AMEC Conference; National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA) Conference

  • Lilyana Amezcua, MD, MS, FAAN

    Lilyana Amezcua, MD, MS, FAAN

    Associate Professor of Neurology
    DEI Champion
    Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship Program Director
    Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care and Research Group
    lamezcua@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Population Health and Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) in Neurology
    • Diversity initiatives in research
    • Community engagement and health equity programs that support DEI and brain health
    • DEI Grand Rounds speakers
    • Resident and faculty DEI training

  • William J. Mack, MD, MS, FAANS, FACS, FAHA

    William J. Mack, MD, MS, FAANS, FACS, FAHA

    Vice Chair, Academic Affairs
    Professor of Neurosurgery
    Neuroscience Graduate Program
    Champion of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion​
    william.mack@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Grand round speakers program incorporating women/underrepresented minority speakers as visiting professors speaking on DEI issues in Neurosurgery
    • Research Grant awarded to URM medical student
    • DEI/ Implicit Bias Training for residents and faculty

  • Nicole Mitchell-Chadwick, MD

    Nicole Mitchell-Chadwick, MD (she/her)

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology- Keck School of Medicine of USC
    Director OB/GYN Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    Assistant Residency Program Director Ob/Gyn
    Member, ACOG District IX DEI Committee
    Member, GEMS- KSOM Implicit Bias Trainer
    Member, Keck Executive Steering Committee for DEI
    USC Verdugo Hills OB/GYN
    evelyn.mitchell@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Equity Morbidity & Mortality Conferences for clinical care departments
    • Standardizing holistic interview strategies for hiring of residents, faculty, and staff
    • Equity Chief Resident
    • Alumni/Resident mentoring program
    • Faculty / Staff DEI Taskforce
    • DEI curriculum via monthly departmental newsletters and grand rounds/ trainings
    • Social Justice Dinners
    • DEI focused clinical research

  • Lernik Torossian, OD, FAAO

    Lernik Torossian, OD, FAAO

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology
    Chief of Optometry Service
    Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – USCREI, CNL & GIBT
    Doctor of Optometry
    USC Roski Eye Institute
    lernik.torossian@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Implicit Bias training for department faculty
    • Allyship training for department faculty, students, and student researchers
    • Summer DEI pipeline program for current USC undergraduate students to increase exposure to careers in eyecare
    • Developing DEI web page for the department
    • Program to introduce more current KSOM students to the field of Ophthalmology

  • Juliann Kwak Lee, MD

    Clinical Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery (Clinician Educator)
    Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Officer for the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery
    Orthopaedic Surgery
    kwaklee@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Visiting student scholarships for URM applicants
    • DEI Grand Rounds speakers
    • DEI commitment to faculty and resident recruitment

  • Tamara Chambers, MD

    Tamara Chambers, MD

    Chief, Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
    Associate Director of Perioperative Services
    Medical Director, Speech & Audiology
    LAC+USC Medical Center
    Associate Program Director
    Associate Professor
    Caruso Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
    Co-Chair of DEI for Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
    tamara.chambers@med.usc.edu

     

    Daniel Kwon, MD FACS

    Daniel Kwon, MD FACS

    Associate Professor
    Head and Neck Oncology, Microvascular Reconstruction, Thyroid & Parathyroid Surgery
    Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery
    Co-Chair of DEI for Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
    daniel.kwon@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • OtoTeaches: Pipeline program working with Bravo Medical Magnet HS, MedCor, and USC Bridging the Gap Programs to increase exposure to otolaryngology
    • OtoTalks: Movie viewing and scheduled committee meetings to discuss important topics, propose new directions, and provide a sense of community
    • OtoGives: Outreach projects to provide service for the community and build community with each other
    • Updating faculty recruitment practices to assess commitment to diversity

  • Saloni Walia, MD

    Saloni Walia, MD

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Pathology
    Director of DEI, Pathology
    walia.saloni@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Career fair for undergraduate students from local community colleges
    • Grand rounds and didactic teaching for trainees and faculty related to DEIB curriculum
    • DEI department champion included in search committees for staff and faculty

  • Michael Bryant, MD, MBA

    Michael Bryant, MD, MBA

    Vice Chair of Diversity Equity, Inclusion (Department of Pediatrics)
    Division Head (Pediatric Hospital Medicine)
    Clinical Professor of Pediatrics
    USC Keck School of Medicine
    Division of Hospital Medicine
    Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
    mbryant@chla.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Advocacy for leadership selection that is metric driven, transparent and accountable
    • Coffee Chat Network: pilot to create a searchable database for faculty to connect with others with shared or different intersectional identities
    • Evaluating leave practices that potentially result in bias and disproportionately impact our faculty and their families
    • Development of DEI webpage
    • Gender Equity Initiative
    • Expansion of community relationships

  • Joyce Richey, PhD

    Joyce Richey, PhD

    Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion
    Associate Professor, Clinical Physiology & Neuroscience
    Associate Professor, Clinical Medical Education
    Pronouns: She/Her
    jrichey@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Diversity and Inclusion Research Seminar Series
    • Physiology & Neuroscience (P&N) Visiting Scholars Program: attracting underrepresented post-docs or early-stage investigators from HBCUs and MSIs to conduct summer research with P&N faculty.

  • Ricky N. Bluthenthal, PhD

    Ricky N. Bluthenthal, PhD

    Professor
    Associate Dean for Social Justice
    Vice Chair for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
    Department of Population and Public Health Sciences
    (he/him/his)
    rbluthen@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Allyship training
    • Departmental climate surveys with faculty, students, and staff
    • Diversity listening sessions with staff and students

  • Ekta Kumar, PsyD

    Ekta Kumar, PsyD

    Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences (Clinician Educator)
    Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
    Psychologist
    Counseling and Mental Health Services
    USC Student Health | Keck Medicine of USC
    Engemann Student Health Center
    Pronouns: She, her, hers
    ekta.kumar@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Multicultural Coordinators across department
    • Implementation of Recruitment of Diverse/Excellent Faculty
    • DEIB Strategic Plan
    • Monthly Social Justice Forum
    • Department-wide trainings: identity, microaggressions, restorative practices, transgender and affirming practices
    • Departmental diversity statement

  • Shelly Bian, MD

    Shelly Bian, MD

    Clinical Assistant Professor
    Department of Radiation Oncology
    Vice Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
    shelly.bian@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Reflections Book Club
    • Community Service Initiatives
    • Resident and Faculty Training

  • Daphne K. Walker, MD

    Daphne K. Walker, MD

    She/Her/Hers
    Vice-Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
    Associate Professor of Radiology
    daphne.walker@med.usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • USC URM Summer Premed Radiology Research Program: 6-week mentored research projects, lectures, skills workshops, shadowing and mentoring
    • USC AMWA-DOR Shadowing Program
    • Radiology Guest Lectures USC MEDS Premedical Courses
    • KSOM-DOR Radiology Women’s Interest Group
    • DOR DEI Advisory Committee:  Inclusive departmental leadership group that promotes DEI initiatives and programming

  • Albert Ernesto Almada, PhD

    Albert Ernesto Almada, PhD

    Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine
    Vice Chair of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)
    aealmada@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • USC SCRM Faculty present as part of the Minority Science Programs at UC Irvine
    • Departmental climate evaluation and remediation program with Academic Pipeline Project (APP) consulting

  • Damon Clark, MD

    Damon Clark, MD

    Assistant Professor of Clinical Surgery
    Associate Medical Director, SICU
    DEI Champion
    Department of Surgery
    damoncla@usc.edu

    Program Highlights

    • Community projects related to violence prevention for medical residents
    • Scholarships for URiM students to do MS4 rotations in General Surgery Program
    • Department of Surgery Grand Rounds on DEI topics