University of Central Florida College of Medicine

The Council for Diversity and Inclusion has set a goal to also “Recruit and Retain Diverse Students/Faculty/Staff.”

The Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion hosts many events on topics such as “The Intersectionality of Race and Different Abilities,” “Exploring the Basic Tenants of Social and Health Inequities,” “Strategies for Inclusive GME Recruitment,” “How to Incorporate Health Equity Into the Medical Curriculum,” and “LGBTQI+ Health: Creating Safer Healing Spaces, Improving Access and Eliminating Disparities.”

The school's Internal Medicine Residency Program states that its program "thrives on cultivating an environment that honors and promotes diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) throughout our residency journey. In collaboration with our Associate Dean of DEI- Dr. Tracy MacIntosh, we are constantly developing our curriculum so that every resident, student and faculty member can care for every patient in order to grant them equal access to the benefits and advantages of medical research, treatments and advances; so that every patient can be truly seen, and heard by their provider." In addition, "Our residents also serve on the UCF COM DEI committee and have opportunities to earn a “Diversity Champion” designation."

The Council for Diversity and Inclusion has set a goal to “Provide Excellent Diversity Education and Scholarship.”

On June 14, 2023, the University of Central Florida announced that it was “funded by a $1.85 million R25 Research Education Program grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Aging” for the INTREPID program, which seeks to “increase the number of underrepresented and disadvantaged undergraduate M-STEM.”

The medical school states that its mission is to promote DEI “so that every research study includes diverse subjects and that the results have real external validity” and “so that every student, staff and faculty member has an opportunity to explore their own biases and work to eliminate them.”

On February 15, 2023, the online publication "City Journal" published an article titled "Racism in the Name of 'Anti-Racism'" which reports that "Officially, UCF reports that it has 14 separate DEI [Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion] programs, costing in the aggregate more than $4 million per year." According to the article, "The university has held minority-only graduation ceremonies, and its counseling center offers racially segregated 'affinity groups' and psychological programs, such as 'Exploring Vulnerability in POC Spaces,' restricted to 'Black-identified, Afro-Latinx and students from African-descent.'” In addition, Ann Gleig, an associate professor of religion and cultural studies, "instructed whites on campus to begin 'waking up to whiteness and white privilege,' encouraging them to 'educate [themselves] on systemic racism and white supremacy.'”

The Office of DEI has a Prospective Student Resource Program and offers students with “the opportunity to engage with COM Student Diversity Liaisons for candid conversation, insight, and perspective from current UCF medical students.”

Furthermore, the Council for Diversity and Inclusion set a goal to “Demonstrate Diversity as a Core Value.”

The Council for Diversity and Inclusion additionally set a goal to “Engage in Meaningful Outreach with Diverse Communities.”

On June 3, 2020, the college published an "Inclusive Message" from the Dean which stated, "As educators, researchers and physicians, we need to speak out against the institutional racism that makes any one of us less than another. We must stand together in solidarity and demand that the kinds of actions that led to the killing of George Floyd and others at the hands of police must end. We must commit to listening and learning from those who experience systemic racism and be equally committed to looking inward and asking ourselves the tough questions about our values, beliefs and biases."

On June 9, 2020, the college's Faculty News section published an article titled "UCF White Coats For Black Lives – 'This Is What Love Directs Us To Do.'” Fourth-year student Yasmeen Elsawaf, who helped organize the event, stated that "It was important for us to do this event to not only stand in solidarity with the black community and Black Lives Matter movement but to showcase that we as a school are committed to doing our part to dismantle systemic racism within the institution of healthcare,"

The University of Central Florida College of Medicine’s Office of DEI states that it encourages students to “attend an upcoming Virtual Open House to learn more about how to pursue a healthcare career with a focus on health equity and ending health disparities.”

The school has a program known as “Medical Enrichment for Diverse Students” or “MEDS.”

The Office of DEI has a program known as Health Leaders Summer Academy, and the “goal of the HLSA is to support students from historically marginalized groups and those committed to promote health equity and social justice.”