LaShyra "Lash" Nolen is a writer, activist and dual-degree MD/MPP student at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Harvard Kennedy School of Government, where she is serving as student council president of her medical school class -- the first documented Black woman to hold this leadership position.

A nationally renowned public speaker and leader of anti-racism in medicine workshops where she has led discussions for prominent organizations such as WebMD and Chemonics International, Nolen has served on panels with Chelsea Clinton and Former Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher. She is the founder of We Got Us, a student-led grassroots community empowerment project with the mission to increase access to education and healing for marginalized communities.

As a leader at HMS, Nolen has spearheaded numerous advocacy initiatives, including a nationwide campaign to secure funding for the Health Careers Opportunity Program. She is a published author and fervent advocate for social justice whose commentary has been published in the Boston Globe, New England Journal of Medicine, Nature, and HuffPost, among others.

Born and raised in Southern California, Nolen experienced the many ways social injustice impacted her community and became deeply passionate about doing the work of health equity. She graduated with honors from Loyola Marymount University (LMU), where she was the recipient of the Robert Graham, S.J. Alumni Award, LMU Student Affair’s highest honor for graduating seniors. Subsequently, she was a Fulbright Scholar in Spain and completed a year of service as an AmeriCorps member, where she served as a health educator in Chicago.

Nolen's work has earned her the honor of being named the 2020 National Minority Quality Forum’s youngest “40 under 40 Leader in Minority Health”; a “2020 Young Futurist” by The Root Magazine; a 2021 Boston Celtics “Hero Among Us” Honoree; the 2021 recipient of the American Medical Student Association's Racial Justice in Medicine Award; and a Forbes 30 Under 30 - Healthcare listee in 2022.

Diversity & Inclusion, Black Heritage, DEI Healthcare, Healthcare Quality & Safety, Healthcare Policy, Forbes, Racism, Public Health, Harvard, Massachusetts, Health,