"We believe that the best way to use this money is to send it to you unconditionally and to the students of our university who have contributed a lot to the world."
Written by | Yan Xiaoliu
Source | "Medical Community" public account
At the end of 2021, just as the students were packing their bags and going home for the holidays, the Mehari Medical College in the United States sent a "big gift" to everyone: send money! There are 956 students in the school, each with 10,000 US dollars (about 63,542 yuan).
"I know it's unbelievable. But you heard that right. Headmaster James Hildres deliberately recorded a video announcing the news.
James Hildres, president of mehari Medical School, is an infectious disease scientist. He led the school's full involvement in the City of Nashville's fight against the pandemic. /WPLN News
Hildres said the money came from covid-19 aid from the U.S. federal government. On March 28, 2020, the Coronavirus Assistance, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES) was signed and implemented, with about $43 billion in education grants, which can be used to set up bursaries and alleviate the pressure on student loans.
The Mehari Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, received about $34 million in grants. The school board discusses and decides to send 1/3 directly to students.
"We believe that the best way to use this money is to send it to you unconditionally and to the students of our university who have contributed a lot to the world." In the video, Hilderes solemnly thanked the students.
He said that in the past 20 months, the school's students have actively participated in the fight against the epidemic, set up a "drive-through test new crown" site on campus, opened to the community, drove a "mobile bus" into the community, carried out screening, and went to vaccine clinics to provide help.
"This money is not a reward for your volunteer service, but a career investment. You are free to decide how to spend it. Hilderes added, "But I personally strongly recommend that you use it to cover related costs such as education and training." ”
The city of Nashville has several "motion detection buses," three of which are operated daily by The Mehari Medical College. /Meharry Medical College
In addition to the money, mehari Medical College has arranged the remaining appropriations clearly.
The school has reached an agreement with MedSchoolCoach, a Boston-based medical admissions and training company. The latter will provide free physician qualification exam training to Mehari's students. The service is usually charged on an hourly basis and costs thousands of dollars per person.
Study medicine and burn money
"I was in the library when I received the announcement. I immediately checked the bank account online, and the money had arrived. Andreas Nelson recalled, "Then I heard a cheer all around me. ”
Nelson has just received a Master of Health Sciences degree from Mehari Medical College. Next, he was enrolled in the school's dental school. "If I get admitted, my student loan will exceed $280,000 (about 1,779,120 yuan) when I graduate. $10,000 is a dime a dozen against debt repayment. But for now, I don't have to worry about eating and renting a house. ”
"If a huge school loan is an endless desert, this $10,000 is an oasis." Nelson sighed.
According to U.S. News & World Report, the average annual tuition fee for U.S. medical schools ranges from $18,808 to $68,886. After graduating, the average debt of a medical student is $215,900 (about 1,371,720 yuan), which takes about 13 years to pay off.
Moreover, this debt is rising year after year. Research from Georgetown University in the United States shows that from 1980 to 2019, U.S. college tuition fees increased by 169%, with an average annual increase of 5.8%.
In the past two years, due to the impact of the new crown epidemic, the tuition fee growth trend of some colleges and universities has slowed down, and students can breathe a sigh of relief. According to US media CNBC and Forbes, the tuition increase in 2021-2022 may be the lowest in history, or even lower than the inflation rate.
In order to further reduce the economic burden of the epidemic on students and their families, some schools have spent thousands of dollars. Johns Hopkins University in the United States announced a 10% tuition waiver for the undergraduate stage in the fall semester of 2021-2022. At the same time, the school provided a total of $14.8 million in assistance to students whose economic situation had changed due to the epidemic.
Because of the color of her skin, Mehari had too few medical births
"Overall, Mehari's students need more money." Reports by Caesar Health News.
Mehari Medical School is an HBCU school, Historically Black Colleges and Universities. At the beginning of its establishment, the school only accepted African American students. In recent years, it has worked to increase the ethnic diversity of its students.
Image courtesy of Meharry Medical College
The school has been in operation for 145 years and is the largest private African-American health sciences school in U.S. history. There are currently clinical medical schools, dentistry schools and public health schools.
But it has a long-standing financial crisis – and so have students.
Hilderes told Nashville Live Report that it was too difficult for African-Americans to practice medicine. "In January 1968, my father died of a serious illness. I was only 11 years old and couldn't understand why there were hospitals and doctors, but my father didn't get effective treatment. And, why there are no African-American doctors. ”
After the loss of a loved one, Hilderes decided to pursue a medical career. However, due to the family's financial situation, the road has been bumpy.
Caesar Health News reported that, like Hildrace, many African-American students come from poor homes. However, due to historical reasons, HBCU schools have received fewer grants, donations, etc. than other schools, and much less money can be used to set up scholarships.
As a result, African-American students may not be able to study if they do not have a student loan. According to Caesar Health News, mehari medical school has the highest average student loan compared to other colleges and universities in Tennessee.
"Almost all colleges and universities receive grants under the CARES Act, but HBCU schools are the happiest to spend money on students." Caesars Health News pointed out that more than 20 HBCU schools have proposed that the remaining tuition fees of some students be waived. Some schools even directly "collect people without collecting money".
According to the Association of American Medical Schools (AAMC), African-American physicians make up only 5 percent of working physicians in the United States today — a slowly growing share over the past century or so.
Source:
1.Why an HBCU Med School Decided to Put CARES Act Money Into Students’ Pockets. KHN
2.The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act: Summary of Key Health Provisions. KFF
3.Meharry Medical College. https://home.mmc.edu/
4.Nashvillian of the Year: Dr. James Hildreth. Nashvillescene
5.‘You Heard Me Right’: Meharry Medical College President Surprises Students With $10K Each, No Strings Attached. Eurweb
6.Meharry Medical College gifts students $10,000 ahead of Thanksgiving. Tennessean
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