The University of Hawaiʻi’s John A. Burns School of Medicine was ranked first in the nation by the American Association of Medical Colleges for its community engagement.
School officials said the 2026 Spencer Foreman Award for Outstanding Community Engagement School is one of the association's highest honors.
“It serves a state whose geography, cultural diversity, and unique health care needs shape its approach to medical education, research, and clinical care,” the AAMC award statement reads. “At JABSOM, community engagement is not a simple outreach endeavor; it is embedded within the institution’s mission, fostering partnerships in which communities are the recipients of the work and active collaborators.”
The association praised JABSOM for its response to natural disasters, its work with Hawaiʻi's homeless population through the HOME Project, and its outreach in rural areas. It cited the progression that each medical student takes within their four years at the school, starting in their first year with community events and place-based curriculum.
Sam Shomaker, the school’s dean, said prioritizing a sense of place and immersing each student in the communities they may serve in the future is one of JABSOM’s highest priorities.
“It starts with our medical students, 90% of whom come from this state, and they have a sense of service to this place which raised them, and that flows through everything we do at JABSOM,” Shomaker said. “We’re recruiting more students from public high schools, more students from neighbor island settings, and that is what JABSOM is all about.”
JABSOM has trained more than 3,000 physicians since 1965. Nearly half of the practicing physicians across Hawaiʻi graduated from the school or currently teach there.
“By combining the resources of academic medicine with the knowledge, culture, and expertise of Hawaiʻi’s communities, JABSOM has built a model of community engagement that is deeply rooted in place, sustained through trusted relationships, and woven throughout its institutional mission,” the AAMC wrote.
