American Samoan born and raised, Nicole Angelica McGoon, a freshman at Vallejo High School is a Delegate to the Congress of Future Medical Leaders in Lowell, MA next week.
The Congress is an honors-only program for high school students who want to become physicians or go into medical research fields.
The purpose of this event is to honor, inspire, motivate and direct the top students in the country who aspire to be physicians or medical scientists, to stay true to their dream and, after the event, to provide a path, plan and resources to help them reach their goal.
Nicole‘s parents are Louis and Juliana McGoon, citizens of Fiji who lived in American Samoa for several years before migrating to California in 2013,
Louis was manager of Transpac and Juliana was part of the BlueSky management team.
Nicole, who was a student at Pacific Horizons and South Pacific Academy, was nominated by Dr. Robert Darling, the Medical Director of the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists.
She as selected based on her academic achievement, leadership potential and determination to serve humanity in the field of medicine.
During the three-day Congress, Nicole and students from across the country will hear Nobel Laureates and National Medal of Science Winners talk about leading medical research; be given advice from Ivy League and top medical school deans on what to expect in medical school; witness stories by patients who are living medical miracles; be inspired by fellow teen medical science prodigies; and learn about cutting-edge advances and the future in medicine and medical technology.
Richard Rossi, Executive Director, National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists says. “Focused, bright and determined students like Nicole McGoon are our future and she deserves all the mentoring and guidance we can give her.”
The Academy offers free services and programs to students who want to be physicians or go into medical science.
The 15year-old Nicole has just completed her first year of high school in Vallejo, California where was was in the Biotech Academy, and was awarded top Honors in Biology, ‘BestPresenter’, Best Writer and best Class President.
She shares that “schooling here in the US has been a culture shock for her especially coming from an island where our values and morals are taught and ingrained from a very young age.”
She said her school peers take their education, access to great opportunities and programs in the US for granted.
She writes that her most startling experience was children using inappropriate language as though it were appropriate on the school campus.
The young scholar says, “ It has been an interesting journey but I’m thankful that my culture and upbringing has helped me to focus and be diligent in my studies.”
