Black Women Doctors: Dr. Renee Rosalind Jenkins

Abstract

Dr. Renee Rosalind Jenkins earned her undergraduate and medical degrees at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. There, as an African American woman in a predominantly white school, she encountered subtle messages of prejudice and low expectations for minority students. She remained undeterred, however, and maintained a positive and proactive philosophy. Dr. Jenkins went on to become chair of the Department of Pediatrics and Child Care at the Howard University College of Medicine, and the first African American president of the Society of Adolescent Medicine.