NEW ORLEANS - Today, Council President Helena Moreno celebrated the arrival of Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine, only the sixth HBCU medical school in the country, to the City of New Orleans. The new college of medicine at Xavier will advance the work of what is already the nation’s premier academic training center for medical professionals of color. Xavier already graduates more African-American students and students of color who achieve Medical Degrees and Ph.D’s in health sciences than any other educational institution in the nation. 

“It is a rare and truly transformational moment when a community wins the opportunity to create a brand new medical school, a school that will train generations of medical professionals and drive research and economic change that will be felt for decades," said Council President Moreno. "This partnership between Xavier and Ochsner will also ensure our bioinnovation sector will become a driving force in our economy while simultaneously building cohorts of critically needed medical professionals of color as one of the nation's few HBCU medical schools. Congratulations to President Verret, Pete November, and the entire Ochsner team for this momentous occasion.”

There are 170 medical schools in the United States, but HBCU medical schools make up a tiny proportion of that total. African Americans comprise only 5% of the nation’s doctors, although they represent nearly 13% of the nation’s population. Xavier Ochsner College of Medicine (XOCOM) will be the only HBCU medical school in the Gulf South, adding an essential institution in an area of the country that expects to have significant shortages of medical professionals. Louisiana alone ranks third in the largest shortage of physicians through 2030 in the country. XOCOM hopes to seat 50 students in its inaugural year, with growth expected in the future.

XOCOM will be based in the heart of New Orleans Biodistrict, a growing hub of economic growth and innovation bolstered by local, state, and national collaboration.