AAMC Recognizes Recipients of 2024 ACE Award for Advocacy, Collaboration, and Education

• Press Release

The AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) is proud to honor four academic medicine champions with the 2024 AAMC ACE Award for Advocacy, Collaboration, and Education. Established in 2023, ACE award recipients are honored for leading and collaborating with the nation's medical schools and academic health systems and teaching hospitals to improve the health of patients, families, and communities nationwide.

"The AAMC recognizes the 2024 ACE Award honorees for their leadership in the academic medicine community and their work to elevate the contributions of diverse physicians, which improves the health of communities nationwide," said Danielle Turnipseed, JD, MHSA, MPP, AAMC chief public policy officer. "These four awardees exemplify the AAMC's mission to improve the health of people everywhere. We are proud to champion their work and look forward to continuing future collaborations to strengthen the health care workforce and save the lives of patients."

The 2024 ACE Awards will be presented at a reception on Sept. 11 at the AAMC's headquarters in Washington, D.C., to kick-off and celebrate the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's (CBCF) 53rd Annual Legislative Conference and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute's (CHCI) 47th Leadership Conference. The reception is by invitation only and is sponsored in collaboration with the AAMC, the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), the National Medical Association, and the National Minority Quality Forum (NMQF).

"At this year's joint reception in honor of the CBCF and CHCI, we are bringing together more collaborators and more voices to emphasize the excellence and achievement taking place in academic medicine throughout these communities," said Turnipseed. "Now more than ever, it is critical to demonstrate the positive impact on health and communities derived by the contributions of a diverse physician workforce. Celebrating our 2024 ACE awardees gives us the opportunity to spread this important message amidst a number of challenging legislative actions."

Preceding the reception, the AAMC will host a panel discussion with the NHMA and NMQF on the political landscape impacting physician workforce diversity. The panel will be held on Sept. 11, from 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. ET, at the AAMC's headquarters at 655 K St., NW, in Washington, D.C. The panel is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Learn more about this year's ACE Award recipients:

Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio) is the chair emerita of the Congressional Black Caucus and the current ranking member of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions. She is also co-chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Task Force. Rep. Beatty is a vocal leader and advocate for the issues impacting Black Americans, including voting rights reform, police brutality, financial inequality, diversity and inclusion, health care access, and gun violence prevention. In 2024, Rep. Beatty and Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) introduced H. Res. 1180, which recognizes the importance of DEI in medical education and affirms congressional support for DEI programs and academic freedom at medical education institutions. In May 2024, Rep. Beatty delivered a passionate speech on the House floor advocating for DEI in medical education and health care. She represents Ohio's Third Congressional District which includes several AAMC member institutions, including Ohio State University College of Medicine, Ohio State University Health System, Ohio State University, Wexner Medical Center, OhioHealth, OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital and Nationwide Children's Hospital.

Henri R. Ford, MD, MHA, is the dean and chief academic officer at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. Dean Ford is a world-renowned pediatric surgeon who was elected the 2023-24 president of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and inducted into the ACS' Academy of Master Surgeon Educators for consistently demonstrating leadership and excellence in surgical education. During his ACS presidency, Dean Ford led with the theme that illustrates his goal in academic medicine - "Achieving Our Best Together: #InclusiveExcellence." He has consistently focused on addressing health care inequality in the United States and abroad. Born in Haiti, Dean Ford traveled back to his home country on an emergency mission in 2010 to care for survivors following a devastating earthquake. In 2015, he performed the first successful conjoined twins' separation in Haiti, and he regularly returns to teach, lead surgical teams, and provide crucial medical assistance. A prolific physician-scientist, Dean Ford has worked to make the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine one of the most diverse medical schools in the country. A recipient of the AAMC Gold Humanism in Medicine Award, Dean Ford also serves as chair of the AAMC Council of Deans and is a member of the AAMC Board of Directors. In 2022, he was elected to the National Academy of Medicine and recognized for his "charismatic, mission-driven leadership."

Elena Rios, MD, MSPH, MACP, is president of the National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF) and the co-founder and former president of the National Hispanic Medical Association. Since graduating from Stanford University and the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Medicine, and founding the NHMA and NHHF in 1994, Dr. Rios has served as president of the Chicano/Latino Medical Association of California, founder of the National Network of Latin American Medical Students, and as a member of the California Department of Health Services Cultural Competency Task Force, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Health Disparities Committee, the American Medical Association's Disparities Commission and Minority Affairs Consortium Steering Committees, and more. Dr. Rios has received multiple national and international awards for her outstanding contributions to improving health equity and is highly regarded as an authority and an advocate for Hispanic physician issues and the Hispanic community.

Melanie Valentín is a fourth-year medical student at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. Her experiences growing up in an immigrant family in Southern California made her acutely aware of health disparities and inspired her to become a community physician leader who advocates for accessible and culturally sensitive care. Melanie served as the health advocacy and policy chair for the National Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA) from 2023-24. In this role, she organized the largest gathering of LMSA students for the 2nd annual SALUD Policy Summit in Washington, D.C., to lobby for federal policies and bills that support the diversification of the health care workforce and increase access to equitable health care for marginalized communities. In anticipation of the event, Melanie and her team created several national task forces, grassroots organization partnerships, and advocacy skill workshops to teach medical students how to grow their voices as future physician leaders. Melanie is proud of her Mexican and Puerto Rican heritage and will advocate for patients as a future family medicine physician.