Meet Janet Martin, MD Candidate, and the September featured Science Sista of the Month! Janet was born on the southside of Chicago but grew up mainly in the south suburbs. In 2018, she graduated from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, with her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology. The summer following college, Janet took a few weeks to visit India on a school program, studying Tibetan medicine and meditation and eastern medicinal practices. While in India, she developed much deeper roots in her spirituality and began studying religion & astrology more heavily. In the fall, she started the next phase of her educational journey at Loyola University and graduated with her Masters of Science in Medical Physiology in May 2019. Finally, that following year, she enrolled in medical school at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine.
Currently, Janet is a second-year medical student; however, she has many layers that make up who she is. While being a Black woman with a passion for travel, spirituality, astrology, and partying with friends (lol), in addition to being a science student studying medicine, Janet has always been keen on the underlying doubt & discrimination Black women face in higher educational & professional spaces. It is for that reason that in 2018, she founded the Beauty and Brains Organization with her sister. Their mission is to help bridge the gap of inaccessibility to resources, which, in turn, will encourage confidence in our young women, lessen the influence of those who doubt us, and overall elevate our future Black leaders of the world. She is passionate about Black women bringing their whole selves into the work they do, and not allowing society to diminish their personality under the guise of “professionalism”. Black women can be everything & more, so with Beauty and Brains, she aims to encourage that confidence in all young women!
As a physician, Janet wants to integrate both western & eastern medical practices to holistically heal each of her patients. She is concerned with Black skin specifically being so underrepresented in medical studies, which is why she would love to practice dermatology, specializing in melanated skin. Since the skin is the largest & most visible organ on our body, she believes that the overall health of our skin determines each of our confidence walking into the world!
