MEDICAL BULLETIN

Class of 2008 students join alumni board

Michelle Kim and Dante Roulette of the Class of 2008.

Michelle Kim and Dante Roulette of the Class of 2008 joined the Medical Alumni Association in 2004-2005 as student representatives for their class.

Kim grew up in Dayton, Ohio, but her family now lives in suburban Detroit. She majored in biology and Spanish as an undergraduate at Case Western Reserve University, graduating in 2004. By choosing a career in medicine, she is following in the footsteps of her father, a radiation oncologist. Currently, Kim is planning a career in oncology, her interest piqued during her undergraduate years by attending an American Society of Clinical Oncology conference with her father, conducting colon cancer research at the Institute of Pathology, and attending two conferences of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR).

“I think one of my more exciting awards was a research scholarship I received from the AACR, the Thomas J. Bardos Science Education Award, that enabled me to attend two of their annual meetings by providing a stipend for the meetings as well as research,” she said. “I learned a lot by presenting at and attending these meetings and felt encouraged by their vested interest in the education of youth.”

Kim said that one of the reasons she chose to undertake her medical education at the university was that she already had established relationships with staff, faculty, administrators and students. “I knew I may want to continue projects I had already started, as well as create new endeavors with ties I had throughout the university,” she said. Also, “I felt the students were generally happier here than elsewhere. I was also honored to receive a scholarship, so cost was a factor in my decision-making as well.” Kim is a Dean’s Scholar.

In addition to the Medical Alumni Association, she has been active with the Committee of Student Representatives student government body, as well as with the Christian Medical and Dental Association.

Roulette, originally from Shaker Heights, Ohio, is most recently from Boston. During high school, he spent two summers working at what is now known as the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. The work resulted in a publication. Subsequently, he earned his undergraduate degree in management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1998. Afterward, he was an information technology consultant in Washington, D.C., Boston, New York and New Jersey for three years. “I worked in utility deregulation, specifically designing billing and customer care systems,” he said. “I also worked for three years at MIT.”

Roulette said he decided to pursue a career in medicine because “I like the idea that I can have a job that challenges me intellectually and also lets me feel like I’ve done some good at the end of the day.” Currently, he is undecided as to a specialization. “I am open to all specialties,” he said. “I changed my undergraduate major several times before graduating, and I expect to be interested in many medical specialties before I am done with school. I suspect I will end up splitting my time between teaching and working with patients.”

Roulette said he chose the School of Medicine because of the people he met while interviewing. “I chose the place where I felt most comfortable,” he said. “It was a decision driven largely by emotion.” He is a Satcher-Pamies Scholar at the school.

In addition to the Medical Alumni Association, Roulette has been active as a volunteer at the Free Clinic of Greater Cleveland and on various committees within the school.