The KCMS-Community Foundation (KCMS-CF) offers scholarships to support URiM medical students. The KCMS-CF acknowledges the historical and enduring effects of racism against Black and Indigenous people and other People of Color and the unique structural challenges URiMs face during medical training and their careers. The Medical Society believes that diversity and inclusion in medicine remain critical to improving health care for all.

The URiM Scholarships will be awarded from an initial endowment of $100K but needs more donations to make the greatest impact. Could you help us get there by donating TODAY?

The Scholarship Application Evaluation Committee considers factors, including but not limited to financial need, personal statement, academic achievement, and involvement and interest in public health or health disparities work.

Eligible students are in medical school and meet AAMC URiM criteria. All academic scholarships shall be awarded for use in an academic degree-granting medical school program at a medical school in WA state that is accredited by The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME), part of the U.S. Department of Education, leading to the M.D. degree in the United States, or The American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM), leading to a D.O. degree in the U.S.

Scholarships will be consistent with and awarded in compliance with all KCMS-CF policies and purposes.

Underrepresented in Medicine Scholarship

Please DONATE HERE to support the URiM Scholars Award provided by the KCMS Community Foundation and help fulfill our commitment to cultivating a diverse and culturally competent workforce by ensuring access to medical education for students from underrepresented minority groups.

Your financial support will enable the KCMS-CF to award tuition scholarships to break down one of the most common barriers for minority physicians. By donating, you can help enhance the quality of patient care and bring greater diversity to physician education and the healthcare industry.

Selection Criteria

The AAMC defines underrepresented in medicine as “those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in the medical profession relative to their numbers in the general population.”

Medical students are full-time students currently enrolled in an accredited medical school program leading to the M.D. or D.O. degree in the U.S.

Scholarship Application Evaluation Committee* will review and consider factors, including but not limited to financial need, personal statement, academic achievement, community and public service, and involvement and interest in public health or health disparities work.

*The Scholarship Application Evaluation Committee consists of the KCMS Scholarship Committee, KCMS’s CEO and may include the KCMS Board of Trustees Members and community partners.

GENERAL FUND

The KCMS-CF, which is a nonprofit 501(c)3 charitable organization formed to

• Unify organizations to improve the health of the people in and around King County,
• Continue the Society’s enduring commitment to advance both the profession of medicine and the caring and concern of the physician-patient relationship,
• Provide scholarship funds to medical students through its educational and charitable giving,
• Create a lasting legacy for the King County Medical Society.

Specific programs that the Community Program offers are

• Education: The KCMS-CF recognizes the extraordinary financial needs of medical students. In response to the financial shortcomings faced by a majority of medical students, the CF will issue several scholarships each year once endowment requirements are met.
• Community: The Program seeks opportunities to promote civic responsibility through community charitable gifts, outreach, and volunteerism.
• History: Preserving and maintaining the rich history of medicine and public health in King County through education, and special programs is a priority.

Ways to Give to assist students and leave a legacy for future physicians:

I. Cash: please click here to donate directly to the scholarship fund.

II. Grateful Patients Program: Do you have patients that would like to do something special for you? Send them to this page, and they can donate to the scholarship program in your name. Do your patients have a story that they’d like to share? We would love to highlight these fundraising events in our monthly newsletter. Contact info@kcmsociety.org

III. Grateful Family Program: Encourage family and friends to donate directly to the scholarship fund on your birthday, retirement, or in memory of a loved one. Each personalized fundraising effort provides the opportunity to make more physicians aware of the opportunity to support our mission.

IV. Give Through Your Will: Leaving a portion of an estate to the Community Foundation is one of the most significant ways you can impact their community long past your lifetime. We work directly with Professional Advisors to help members leave a legacy that can make a difference for generations.

V. Give in Memory: One lasting way to remember a loved one is to establish a fund in their memory. Memorial gifts are collected on the family’s behalf, and we work with the family to determine how best to honor your loved one. This can mean establishing a scholarship in their name and with specific criteria set out by you.

VI. Create a named scholarship through the KCMS-CF:  It’s a meaningful way to honor family and friends. But how?

Step 1: To Establish an Endowed Scholarship: We urge you to work with our staff to create an endowed scholarship in the name of a loved one or yourself. These funds are designed to be permanent and perpetual and can be created with gifts totaling a minimum amount of $25,000, contributed in full at the outset, or with an initial commitment that is added over time until the endowment level of $25,000 is attained. The principal of the fund is invested to produce income, and an annual award is made to a student/s. The principal remains untouched so that the endowment can last into perpetuity.

Step 2: Establish Scholarship Criteria: Endowed KCMS-CF scholarships can be awarded to deserving students based on the area of interest, leadership potential, academic achievement, etc. As a scholarship donor, you choose the name of the scholarship and the requirements. The KCMS-CF staff is available to help you create the criteria for your scholarship. It is your scholarship to craft.

Step 3: Administration of Scholarship Funds: In collaboration with the medical schools, a selection committee carefully reviews student scholarship applications and selects the most deserving recipient(s) based on the donor-established criteria. Major scholarship fund contributors are notified annually when the scholarship recipient(s) has been selected and are informed of the name and hometown of the recipient, as well as the amount of the award. If so desired, the recipient and donor can meet.

Tax Benefits of Funding a Scholarship: An outright gift in cash or appreciated securities will allow you to receive immediate tax benefits in the year you make the gift to the KCMS-CF. In the case of appreciated securities, you may also avoid capital gains taxes.

You can also provide for your scholarship in your estate plans. Estate or planned gifts are easy ways to establish a scholarship without affecting your current income or assets.

Contact KCMS CEO Nancy L. Belcher directly for more information  info@kcmsociety.org

FAQs About Individual Named Scholarships

• How are Society Community Foundation scholarships awarded? Foundation scholarship potential student recipients will be identified by their medical schools (UW, PNWU-HS, and WSA).  A selection committee will carefully review each application and select the most deserving recipient(s) based on the established criteria.
• How are Named King County Medical Society Community Foundation scholarships chosen?
  The major benefactor of a scholarship establishes the scholarship name. You can establish a scholarship in your name or choose to name it for a friend, family member, organization, or a favorite faculty member.
• How are the selection criteria established for the scholarship I am establishing?
  You can help establish the scholarship criteria by expressing your intentions for the award. The Society’s Community Foundation staff will draft the scholarship criteria according to your specifications and present them to you for your approval.
• What are the selection criteria established for the scholarship I am establishing? You can help establish the scholarship criteria by expressing your intentions for the award. The Society’s Community Foundation staff will draft the scholarship criteria according to your specifications and present them to you for your approval.
• Will I receive a notification when a student is awarded the scholarship? You will be notified annually of the selected scholarship recipient(s). You will be informed of the recipient’s name and hometown, the award amount, and the fund’s status. Your scholarship will also be recognized in our annual report.