Upstate Medical University has announced the creation of its first-ever Upstate Say Yes Scholarship that will provide financial support to include four years of tuition to medical school, housing in Upstate’s Geneva Tower and a yearly $5,000 stipend for the four-year medical degree path. The total scholarship gift will exceed $240,000 for the four-year degree program.

Upstate officials say the number of Say Yes scholarships to be awarded each year will depend on the number of Say Yes students accepted into Upstate’s medical school.

The recipient of the first Upstate Say Yes Scholarship is Alex Guerrero. A Syracuse resident who emigrated from Cuba, Guerrero graduated from Henninger High School in 2018 and received a Say Yes scholarship to attend SUNY Cortland, where he received his bachelor’s degree in 2022.

“Upstate Medical University offers numerous programs aimed at creating opportunities for education and job pathways for many of our Syracuse neighbors,” said Mantosh Dewan, MD, president of Upstate Medical University. “Eliminating boundaries to higher education and employment is a most gratifying undertaking and a major focus of work as an academic medical center, as we look to prepare tomorrow’s health care workforce.”

“The Upstate Say Yes Scholarship is one of the many ways Upstate is doing this important work,” he said. “I am especially pleased to welcome Alexander Guerrero as our first Upstate Say Yes Scholarship recipient. The story of his young life is inspiring and I’m eager to watch his development as a physician.”

Ahmeed Turner, executive director of Say Yes Syracuse, appreciates the opportunity Upstate is offering to Say Yes students and said Alex is the perfect candidate for the inaugural award.

“Alex is an example of the talent we have right here in the Syracuse City School District, Turner said. “We're proud of the progress he's made and happy we were able to assist in making his journey possible.”

Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh who participated in the announcement with SUNY Chancellor John King, recognized Guerrero and his family, during the festivities, held July 15 in the Setnor Academic Building.

“To see how far you’ve come is a testament to your drive as well as the support of your family,” Walsh said. “We celebrate the people who made the Say Yes to Education program possible. It’s also an opportunity for us to spread the word about the program and what we have achieved as a community with Say Yes.”

Before submitting his application to the Norton College of Medicine, Guerrero completed two years or 4,000 hours of research as a student in Upstate’s Post-baccalaureate Research and Education Program (PREP-Up). In this program, Guerrero worked alongside Upstate faculty and recent PhD graduates on research related to neurodevelopmental disorders, such as Fragile X Syndrome which causes intellectual disability.

Over the last four years, he has spent weekends working as a patient care technician in the Emergency Department at Garnet Health Medical Center in Middletown, N.Y.

To be eligible for an Upstate Say Yes Scholarship students must have been accepted in the Norton College of Medicine and fulfilled Say Yes to Education Syracuse requirements, among them, graduating from a Syracuse City School District or Syracuse charter high school, and attending a Say Yes partner college or university. 

Guerrero received a traditional white coat, one of the most common symbols of the medical profession, from Norton College of Medicine Dean Lawrence Chin, MD,

“I hope to use this Say Yes scholarship to the best of my ability and hope to give back to the community once I graduate,” Guerrero said.

Caption: Attending the Say Yes Scholarship announcement at Upstate are, from left, Ahmeed Turner, executive director of Say Yes Syracuse; SUNY Chancellor John King; Upstate Say Yes Scholarship recipient Alex Guerrero; Norton College of Medicine Dean Lawrence Chin, MD; Upstate President Mantosh Dewan, MD, and Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh.