FLEMING ISLAND – Stratton Fulker, a ninth-grade student at Fleming Island High, has been nominated to attend this year’s National Congress of Future Medical Leaders and Physicians, an honors-only program for high school students wanting to become physicians or go into medical research.

Stratton’s nomination was signed by Dr. Mario Capecchi, winner of the Nobel Prize and the Science Director of the National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists, for his outstanding academic achievement.

“You are selected based on your GPA. It’s for Honor’s superior students in high school. If you have great qualities about yourself, they also look into that,” Fulker said.

The Congress of Future Medical Leaders Conference will be held June 21-23 on the University of Massachusetts Lowell campus.

During the three-day congress, Fulker will join students from across the country and hear Nobel laureates and National Medal of Science winners talk about leading medical research. Participants will be advised by Ivy League and top medical school deans on what to expect in medical school. They will hear stories of patients living medical miracles, be inspired by fellow teen medical science prodigies, and learn about cutting-edge advances and the future in medicine and medical technology.

“We’re going to have a big conference with hundreds of students from around the country,” Fulker said. “We’re going to meet and talk to Nobel Prize winners. We’re going to view live surgery on a big screen and ask questions while they are operating.”

The event’s purpose is to motivate students who aspire to be physicians or medical scientists to stay true to their dream. The event will provide a path, plan and resources to help them reach their goal.

Fulker’s plan is to continue to pursue Advance Placement courses at Fleming Island and eventually enter the Dual enrollment program with a local college, where he will start on a pre-med track.

Fulker is pursuing a volunteer position in the Naval Hospital’s Surgery Unit through the American Red Cross. He credits his lacrosse Coach, former U.S. Naval Academy lacrosse ace, and NAS Jax neurologist Dr. John Hawley for inspiring him to pursue medicine and connecting him with volunteer opportunities.

“I have been a part of the Naval Hospital since 2004, and so I’ve heard good things about the program through the students who rotate through the clinic,” Dr. Hawley said. “When Stratton mentioned that he wanted to go into medicine, I thought that it might be a good option for him.”

The base youth program consists of many programs specifically designed to offer participants in-person experience working with patients in a medical-type environment. The class consists of two weeks of full-time classroom training, after which participants are assigned to different clinics.

“You go through orientation, and the various specialists at the clinic volunteer their time to be with them. You might be in internal medicine one day, pediatrics another day; you bounce between the specialists depending on what your interests are,” Dr. Hawley said.

Fulker is most excited to work alongside doctors and view live surgery. However, he finds the connection with patients most valuable about the profession.

“The smile and happiness you get from the parents and the patient’s family, just to let them know that they are going to pull through and be okay, knowing that gives me joy for what I could do,” he said.

During a crucial time in America when we need more doctors and medical scientists, we must push to encourage more students to consider professions in the medical field and attract a more diverse group of students to medicine.

Focused, bright, and determined students like Stratton Fulker are our future, and he deserves all the mentoring and guidance we can give him.