Thomas Newlin

Thomas Newlin's grandfather was a urologist in the U.S. Navy. Following his grandfather’s military path, Thomas joined the U.S. Army and began his medical studies at the Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine. Thomas, now a second lieutenant in the Army, is off to Hawaii to start training as a physical medicine and rehabilitation specialist once he graduates as an MD.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Thomas and his fellow students could see how circumstances were taking a toll on younger students, especially in public school. They decided to do something about it.

Thomas and some of his classmates created Helping Out Public Education (HOPE), a virtual tutoring service in collaboration with Miami-Dade County Public Schools. HOPE recruited 75 medical students to tutor public high school students in subjects from science to piano. FIU Engagement honored Thomas as a frontline hero for his work on the tutoring project, which continues to this day.

After his internship year at Honolulu's Tripler Medical Center, Thomas will continue his residency training at Walter Reed National Medical Center, the world's largest joint military medical system. Walter Reed provides care for military members and their families, the U.S. president and vice president, members of Congress, and U.S. Supreme Court justices.