"I am the Dream: the Past, Present, and Future" Awards Luncheon

The Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement (DICE) is hosting its third annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service Awards Luncheon to recognize individuals or organizations who have strengthened communities and created solutions to social problems to move us closer to Dr. Martin Luther King’s vision of a “Beloved Community.” Dr. King’s final book before he was brutally assassinated outlined his vision for the next phase of the civil rights movement and how to eliminate poverty and hunger called the Poor People’s Campaign.

Our featured keynote speaker this year will be Gerald Onuoha, MD, MS '15. While Onuoha faced a future seemingly constrained by his circumstances, his story is not one of defeat but of transformation and triumph. Today, Onuoha is a prominent internal medicine hospitalist in Nashville, Tenn., recognized as one of the top ten doctors under 40 by the National Medical Association in 2023. But his journey into medicine has been far from conventional, with early experiences with systemic barriers and personal hardship having profoundly shaped his commitment to health equity and education.

While at Dartmouth, Onuoha honed his skills in healthcare policy, biostatistics, and public health, earning his Master of Science degree in 2015. “Dartmouth sharpened me to be more competent than I was before,” he reflects. This education provided him with the tools to address complex healthcare challenges and reinforce his dedication to improving health systems and outcomes. TDI’s excellent education programs are now more integrated into Geisel’s curriculum and serve as the core of the school’s expansive new Health Sciences programs.

Dr. Onuoha was honored with the 2024 Martin Luther King Jr. Distinguished Alumni Award and we are so proud to have him serve as our 2025 Martin Luther King Jr. Awards keynote speaker.

Contact: Jerome Wilcox