LOS ANGELES — There’s an estimated shortage of nearly 1,500 doctors in South LA, according to research from the California Department of Health Care Access and Information. Charles R. Drew University aims to address the shortage with a new historic program that now serves as the first and only independent 4-year medical degree program offered through a historically Black institution west of the Mississippi. 

The university has also partnered with the NFL in a newly expanded program called the Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative that develops medical students from diverse backgrounds who are considering sports medicine or orthopedic surgery.