Molly McNairy

Receiving The Morehead (now Morehead-Cain), says Molly McNairy, compares to "Alice’s first step through the Looking-glass."

McNairytook The Morehead and ran full speed into that magical looking-glassworld. Intrigued by medicine, the Kinston, N.C., native crafted each of hersummer internships to learn more about the field. Those experiences eventually landed herin London on a Fulbright Fellowship before heading off to HarvardMedical School.

The adventure truly began after herfreshman year at UNC when McNairy worked with homeless youth in SanDiego, advocating for pregnant and single-mother teens to get medicalcare, food subsidies and permanent shelter. McNairy calls this a"critical experience, which solidified my interest in and commitment topublic health."

The next year, she traveled to Brazil withOperation Blessing, an American organization that provides medical,surgical and dental services to resource-poor settings. That firstexposure to international health conditions ignited a passion to domore.

Her final Morehead summer, working at a privatehospital in Niger, strengthened her commitment to addressing healthinequities. As a Fulbright Scholar, McNairy studied at the acclaimed London School of Economics (LSE), receiving a master’sdegree in health policy and economics before going on to earn her M.D. from Harvard.

It's a long way from Chapel Hill, but McNairy still feels the connection.

"I see every stage of my life as an outgrowth and blessing of the previous stage," McNairy said.

"TheMorehead transformed a great public university into a boutique-learningenvironment of exploration, experience and encouragement," McNairysaid. "Truly, I do not know of any educational opportunity thatcompares with The Morehead."