2023-2024 Academic Year
Ashley Inez Thrower, MD is a fourth-year Med-Peds resident at Duke University Medical Center. She was born and raised in Miami, Florida, and attended medical school at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Ashley is passionate about hematology and her research in both medical school and residency has focused on the sickle cell population. After residency, she plans to pursue a career as a nocturnist and eventually apply for an adult Hematology-Oncology fellowship. Ashley continues to serve as President of the Minority Housetaff Association (MHA). As president of the MHA, she aims to continue to promote diversity at Duke through mentoring students, URiM residency recruitment efforts, and fostering a community of wellness amongst current URiM housestaff. Outside of medicine, Ashley enjoys spending time with her partner Ahmad, going to her daughter’s soccer games, having dinner with friends, and traveling to new places.
Dewonna Ferguson, MD is a current second-year Family Medicine resident at Duke. She was born and raised in Saint Louis, Missouri, and graduated from Saint Louis University School of Medicine. Dewonna has a passion for reproductive health, medical education, and promoting diversity in medicine. After residency, she plans to pursue a career in primary care with an emphasis on reproductive health. Throughout her medical career, she has been involved in numerous diversity initiatives including as community service chair of both MAPS and SNMA. During her free time, Dewonna enjoys listening to poetry and jazz, playing games, and spending time with family and friends. She will be serving as Vice President and Medical Student Chair of MHA this year.
César López Angel, MD, PhD is a fourth-year R38 research-track pediatrics resident at Duke. He was born in Guadalajara, México but grew up in San José, CA since the age of four. He attended college at Harvard where he studied candidate HIV vaccines in pre-clinical studies and in clinical trials. He then completed his MD and PhD in immunology at Stanford where he characterized the effects of chronic infection and aging on immune homeostasis, vaccination, and immune signaling networks. His current work in the Duke Center for Human Systems Immunology, and in collaboration with the HIV Vaccine Trials Network, focuses on determining whether baseline or post-HIV vaccine immune signatures affect the risk of acquiring HIV, and whether preexisting CMV immunity modifies the relative risk of HIV acquisition. As Medical Education Chair for Duke MHA, César aims to enhance the sense of community among URiM students, housestaff, and faculty, and to strengthen mentorship relationships across the medical trainee spectrum.
Lauren West-Livingston MD, PhD is a PGY-2 in the Integrated Vascular Surgery program. She completed her undergraduate degree at Duke University, her MS in Biochemistry and Nanoengineering at UNC Greensboro, and her MD/PhD and Master of Studies in Health Law and Policy at the Wake Forest School of Medicine. She has a passion for addressing health disparities in Vascular Surgery, as well as a research focus in vascular tissue engineering. She is dedicated to mentoring and supporting medical students from underrepresented minority backgrounds. Outside of residency training, Lauren enjoys spending time with her spouse, Donovan, their 2 children, Joy and Elanor, and their dogs, Phife and Left Eye.
Berline Francis, MD, Internal-Medicine, PGY-2 is a second-year Internal Medicine resident at Duke University. She is a first generation Haitian-American born and raised in West Philadelphia. Her interest in tutoring and mentoring within underserved communities was fostered during her time in an academic enrichment program from elementary to high school, which she remains remotely active with to this day. She completed her undergraduate career at Howard University in Washington, D.C. where she majored in Biology and completed medical school at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where she served as community service co-chair for SNMA, a member of the Racial Justice Committee for Change, and an AHEC Scholar. During her free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling and learning about different cultures, and trying new foods.
Mia Mallory, MD, MEd is an associate professor of pediatrics and an attending physician in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Duke. She is the current Program Director of Duke’s Pediatric Residency Training Program. She has a strong interest in medical education and diversifying the pediatric workforce. Dr. Mallory was the previous faculty advisor of the Minority Housestaff Association at the University of Cincinnati. During her free time, she enjoys cheering on her Pittsburgh Steelers.