A Unified National Organization: The Budding of LMSA

Decades before the creation of a national organization, medical students across the country formed Latino medical student groups at their respective medical schools, and started to collaborate with other similar groups at the local, state, and regional levels. Eventually, a loose network of engagement began between these regional Latino medical student organizations that evolved into a thriving national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization called the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA). This chapter tells the story of some of the medical students who stepped up as leaders to unify and advocate towards a shared dream of supporting a national community. The existence and growth of the organization have consistently borne out of student-led grassroots efforts, characterized by incremental successes despite the impermanence of leadership tied to the short time period leaders spend in medical school. The organization has also existed as a dynamic amalgamation of personal, professional, regional and Latin American ethnonational and social identities. The organization known today as LMSA is in so many ways the realization of past dreams and the fruit of seeds planted decades ago. In 2022, the organization recognized its oldest originating chapter (Boricua Health Organization Chapter, Harvard Medical School, 1972) while celebrating its 17th annual national conference, 19 years of 501(c)(3) non-profit status, and its 24th national coordinator/president and board of directors.