IFCO/ELAM

I am not sure who has invented those rumors that Cuba is now facing a mortal danger, that it has lost its bearings, and that it could collapse at any moment, after just one lethal visit by US President Barack Obama. The rumors and speculations are snowballing, and in some circles of the North American and European Left, they are already being confused with reality.

Dr. Koch is one of only about 100 Americans who annually attend the school on a scholarship through the New York-based Interreligious Foundation for Community Organization/Pastors for Peace, which encourages graduates to pay their free education forward. Koch serves North Carolina’s apple-growing migrant-farmer community. The quid pro quo is that you come back to the United States and serve people who need medical care, IFCO spokeswoman Emily Thomas says of the scholarship ...that demands no formal obligation. The Cubans will not come and knock on your door. You’re being trained to be a revolutionary doctor. Your goal is to not make as much money as you can but to serve people. It’s a moral commitment, but it’s a very real commitment, she says. After spending six years in Havana, Dr. Koch is sticking to the deal.

Samantha Moore of Detroit, in her final year of medical school.

Congressional briefing with ELAM grads Drs. Alicia Steele of Michigan and Vanessa Avila of California.

IFCO is proud to congratulate all the ELAM graduates who have matched in 2016. We thank all of them, their families and our network of supporters who have over the years supported them during their medical training in Cuba and during this final step in their transition into US residencies. KUDDOS!