USD Sanford School of Medicine student Collin Michels is recipient of USPHS Excellence
Bunger, who has Michels as a student in the Embryology section of the Medical Foundations I course that he teaches, noted that Michels is one of six in his class who have been selected for the Sanford School of Medicine’s Scholarship Pathways Program – a program that allows for students to develop a project over their four years of med school that relates to research, education or service. As an undergraduate student, Michels participated in several projects with state epidemiologist Dr. Lon Kightlinger, including the creation of an antibiogram for the state – the first since 2001. Since beginning med school, Michels has continued his interest in public health by proposing a state project relating to the South Dakota Trauma system.
“Collin has demonstrated significant accomplishments in the field of public health, and is currently investing his knowledge and expertise in the area of trauma care,” noted Bunger. “He is extremely interested in the inclusion of public health in his future clinical practice.”
While at USD, Michels was president of Student Government Association; majored in Spanish and biology; and was a member of the Pre-Med Society. Michels will graduate from the Sanford School of Medicine in 2017, and he received the award Wednesday during a ceremony at the Health Sciences Center in Sioux Falls, S.D. from Dr. Sophie Two Hawk. Two Hawk is an officer in the USPHS and serves as the Chief Executive Officer at the Rosebud Comprehensive Healthcare Facility.