In honor of its 75-year legacy of supporting medical education, the American Medical Association Foundation is proud to announce the 2025 Physicians of Tomorrow recipients. This year, 42 exceptional medical students from across the country were selected to receive $10,000 scholarships as they begin their final year of medical school in the fall.

Since 1950, the AMA Foundation has dispersed $62 million in scholarship aid to help future doctors overcome financial barriers to education. What began with grassroots fundraising and low-interest student loans has grown into a flagship initiative—one that embodies the organization’s long-standing commitment to a well-trained, diverse, and inspired medical community.

“This scholarship has empowered me in my journey to become an ophthalmologist. I am committed to serving in my career as a mentor, an advocate for both patients and trainees, and a community leader.” — Allison Kufta, University of Illinois Chicago College of Medicine

The 2025 awardees represent a wide range of backgrounds, specialties, and medical schools. With funding across 16 scholarship categories, the program recognizes excellence in leadership, service, diversity, and medical specialty interests. From recipients pursuing careers in sleep medicine to those working to advance health equity in underserved communities, each award acknowledges a future physician whose work will strengthen the health of our nation.

These scholarships are made possible thanks to the generosity of our donors and volunteers. Every dollar contributed to the Physicians of Tomorrow program is an investment in the future of health care that enables medical students to focus on learning, patient care, and leadership without being held back by debt.

“Scholarships help reduce the financial burden of medical school, especially for students from low-income or first-generation backgrounds. They also remind us that others believe in our potential to make a difference.” — Amaya Alarcon, A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona

As we celebrate this historic milestone—75 years of supporting physicians and patients—we invite you to join our mission:

• Donate to help fund future scholarships
• Volunteer to serve on a scholarship selection committee and help review and score applications
• Share the program with a student or colleague

Beyond benefiting individual recipients, this meaningful investment strengthens the AMA Foundation’s mission and promotes equity across medicine and health care.

Learn more or get involved: Visit our scholarships page or email us at amafoundation@ama-assn.org.

“This support is more than just financial—it is a vote of confidence in my potential to make a difference. It reminds me that I am not alone in this journey, and that others believe in my ability to give back.” — Sol Lee, Western University College of Osteopathic Medicine

2025 Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship Recipients

American Academy of Sleep Medicine Foundation Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

NatalieDeana Badillo, Weill Cornell Medicine

Walter Jacob, Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai

Lilly Montesano Scheibe, Harvard Medical School

Si Hao Tang, Drexel University College of Medicine

AMA Alliance Grassroots Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Kayla Grooters – Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School Of Medicine

Kristen Waters – Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine

David Jones Peck, MD, Scholarship for Health Equity

Delia Sosa – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine

Dr. Lin and Minta Hill Alexander Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Carolina Quijada – Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Jordan Valenzuela – Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Dr. Patricia Austin Family Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Lidia Dankiv – Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

DREAM MD Equity Scholarship

Angeles Villanueva⁺ – Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine

Formica-Rigg New Jersey Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Jhillika Patel – Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School

Hugh Vincent, MD, Family Scholarship for Physicians of the Future

Sol Lee – Western University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Serinee Tran – David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles

Herman E. Diskin, MD, Memorial Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Isabella Gomes – Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine

Illinois Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Allison Kufta – University of Illinois Chicago College of Medicine

Physicians of Tomorrow General Scholarship

Racquel Bitar – University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School

Katelyn Bonny – Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences

Folasade Fayiga* – Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine

Mahima Goel* – Carle Illinois College of Medicine at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Melody-Joy Drummond – Loma Linda University

Harry Haran – New York Medical College

Amanda Hertel – University of Kansas School of Medicine

Jiwoo Lee – Harvard Medical School

Anmol Shrestha – California University of Science and Medicine

Collin Teague – David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles

Ken Viste Memorial Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Carlene Kranjac – Medical College of Wisconsin

Medical Society of the State of New York Dr. Duane and Joyce Cady Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Alex La Poche – SUNY Downstate

Ohio Physicians of Tomorrow Scholarship

Matthew Fenner – The Ohio State University College of Medicine

Lauren Schaffer – University of Cincinnati College of Medicine

Physicians of Tomorrow Underrepresented in Medicine Scholarship

Michael Acevedo – Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine

Amaya Alarcon – A.T. Still University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona

Chidimma Anunobi – University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine

Francis Cruz – University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine

Anonymous – Warren Alpert School of Medicine at Brown University

Chinenye Ogbonnah – University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School

Ugoma Onubogu – Florida Atlantic University Schmidt College of Medicine

Carolina Rodriguez Orozco – California Northstate University College of Medicine

Joshua Rosario – University of Rochester School of Medicine

Chania Witherspoon – University of South Carolina School of Medicine Greenville

Applications for Physicians of Tomorrow scholarships will open in fall 2025. Recipients will be selected in spring 2026 for the 2026–27 academic year. Learn more on our scholarships page.

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*Scholarships funded by AMA employees and the AMA Health Solutions Group