Candidates for Region I Representative

Ananya Devarajan, OMS II, Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine - Middletown 

My name is Ananya Devarajan, and I am a second-year osteopathic medical student at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Middletown, where I currently serve as the Secretary of our ACOI chapter. I am honored to submit my candidacy for Region 1 Representative on the national SOIMA Board. My goal is to serve as a strong liaison between national leadership and local chapters, using my experience in community engagement, mentorship, and academic support to advocate for and uplift student voices.

As Secretary, I’ve led communications between our ACOI chapter and the student body, promoting educational events and coordinating outreach initiatives to foster a deeper connection to internal medicine. Most recently, I worked alongside our chapter’s Vice President to organize participation at the RECAP Food Pantry in Middletown. This initiative gave students a hands-on opportunity to serve the local community while reinforcing the humanistic and service-oriented values at the core of internal medicine. Together, we ensured the event was well-publicized and accessible, helping to increase student involvement and community impact.

Outside of ACOI, I serve as a MedAchieve mentor, which allows me to support a high school student with aspirations to enter the medical field. As a first-generation medical student myself, I understand the power of mentorship and aim to provide a safe space that encourages and uplifts my mentee at every stage of their education. I am also involved as the Head Teaching Assistant for Biochemistry and as a Teaching Assistant for OMM at my institution, in which I help my peers build their confidence and competence in both academic and clinical foundations.

If elected as the Region 1 Representative, I will bring this same spirit of collaboration, service, and mentorship to the national SOIMA community. I am committed to representing and uplifting the voices of our local chapters while working closely with SOIMA leadership to advance our shared vision for osteopathic internal medicine.

Thank you for your time and consideration.     
 
Liam Kerrick, OMS II, Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine - Sewell

Hello! My name is Liam Kerrick, and I am a second-year medical student at Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine. I am applying to become the Region I Representative for NSOIMA. My interest in this role arises from the positions I have held within my school’s chapter of SOIMA. This last year, I served as President of the club, where I worked closely with the ACOI to host several events. Most notably, we hosted two guest speakers which gave interesting presentations about the field of Internal Medicine and tick-borne diseases. In addition, I attended the ACOI Conference 2024 in Scottsdale, Arizona; where I was granted the opportunity to connect with other student leaders and the amazing people that support our interest groups. These collaborative efforts gave me an immense appreciation for the ACOI, and by running for Region I Representative, I hope to advance SOIMA’s programming on the national level. In this role, I hope to represent all SOIMA branches within our region and increase the amount of programming that happens between SOIMA clubs and the ACOI. I have an immense passion for the field of Internal Medicine, and by serving in this national role, I hope my excitement will be contagious and increase interest in Internal Medicine throughout our region. Thank you for your consideration of my candidacy!

Joseph Rapp, OMS II, Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine - Elmira

My name is Joseph Rapp, and I’m an OMS II at the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Elmira, New York, and I am running to be the Region I Representative for SOIMA. 
I’m originally from New York City and am now living in Elmira, a city in the Southern Tier of New York just north of the Pennsylvania border. One element I hope to deliver as a regional representative is to develop coordination between SOIMA chapters at the broad variety of schools within the region. Having both lived and worked in both densely populated as well as less compact areas of the Northeast, I hope to bring those experiences to the role of addressing the needs for developing SOIMA chapters both urban and rural. Connecting students who are interested in Internal Medicine to colleagues at other schools in the Northeast through national organization is a model that will help facilitate career exploration and development where students undergo their medical education. Careers within Internal Medicine have a wide variety of opportunities to offer and developing a well-connected network of schools within the Northeast will empower student-doctors of each chapter to better find the best fit for them as a future physician. It would be an honor to serve as a liaison for the network of Schools of Osteopathic Medicine and with the ACOI.  

Jonathan Tadros, OMS III, Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine - Stratford  

My name is Jonathan Tadros and I am a third year medical student at Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine. I would like start by giving a little background information about myself. I was born and raised in southern New Jersey. I completed my bachelor of science in biochemistry and molecular biology at Stockton University. Throughout my time in university I worked at a local hospital and after graduating I took on a position working as a patient care technician in the operating room. I truly loved this job as it gave me the opportunity to interact with patients in the scariest and most vulnerable times in their life. My favorite part of the job was speaking to patients prior to having surgery and comforting them and trying to make them laugh or smile. On top of my position in the operating room, I took on a second job working as a pharmacy technician. This job was during the COVID-19 pandemic which gave me the opportunity to participate in the very first COVID-19 vaccine clinics around the state to help administer the vaccine. Throughout my time in medical school I have continued to give back to underserved communities. One of my favorite organizations I get to volunteer with is the COVID-19 Service Corps as a community health worker. The position allows myself and fellow students to go out into underserved communities and provide free health screenings, such as blood pressure, heart rate, pulse oximetry, blood sugar, and even cholesterol levels. For some people in these communities this is the only healthcare that they receive. These opportunities are such a great experience. We have the chance to talk to patients about their health and educate them about their conditions. Additionally, we work alongside social workers who can provide patients with affordable resources if they are uninsured or underinsured. Some other organizations I have been involved with at my school are student government association as the treasurer, public health and prevention club as the secretary, and worked with local community health centers. I am very interested in pursing a career in internal medicine and would be honored to work with other student leaders across the nation. I think I would be a good fit for the region I representative position because of my ability to communicate with others, listen to what others have to say, be respectful, and work hard to achieve a common goal as a team. Thank you for your time and consideration.