Da’Vion Tatum is a student at Harvard University double majoring in Biomedical Engineering and History of Science with a secondary in GlobalHealth and Health Policy.
He aims to forge a career at the intersection of health and social justice as a way to spearhead advancements in scientific innovation, health equity, and positive social change. His interdisciplinary aspirations and passion for helping others allows him to make connections between multiple fields of study and use these connections to foster and encourage an era of true change. Additionally, he plans to operate at the intersection of medicine and law to advocate and actively fight for a more just and compassionate world.
In an interview about his career aspirations, Tatum says that “too often doctors treat patients as problems to be solved and not people who need help. This removes the compassion and humanity from the medical field which negatively impacts the care that patients receive. Being a doctor is about being human, it’s about humanity, not just the biology. Additionally, too many legislators and public officials in office pass health laws and make decisions that affect the health of millions of people, but they have no medical background or experience in the health system to understand how their laws actually affect patients. This is why I aim to intersect medicine and law - in order to bring compassion to care and medical foundation to legislation. I also aim to advocate for accessible health care for all. Health is a human right, not a privilege only wielded by the affluent. It’s time we make compassionate quality health care a right for all and make health equity a reality.”
Born and raised in Houston, TX, Tatum made history in his district (SpringISD) by becoming his school’s first Black male Valedictorian and continued to advocate on behalf of his peers which got him elected as first Black male Class President in the midst of a global pandemic.
Tatum also published his first book, Thriving In My Own Lane, which he wrote in the 8th grade. The district of SpringISD even named an award in his honor titled the “Tatum Award For Rising Writers!” Da’Vion has also been featured on several national news stations for his work.
Out of 99,000+ applicants, he was one of the 150 (less than 1/6th of 1%) to be named a Coca-Cola Scholar! In addition to this, he was one of the 5 chosen out of the 150 to receive the surprise reward from Coca-Cola. He is also a Ron Brown Scholar, an organization dedicated to uplifting Black youth and supporting them on their journey through higher education! He was also admitted to Harvard and all the Ivy Leagues he applied to during the year of their highest applicant pool and lowest acceptance rates. He was also admitted to Stanford, CalTech, UCLA, and UC Berkeley.
“Life’s most urgent and persistent question is, What Are You Doing For Others?” - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Dr. Tatum loading…🔬⚖️