LIVING THE MISSION NUPUR GOEL ’17

Living the Mission

NUPUR GOEL ’17

Gilmour alumni find many ways in their postGilmour lives to live our school mission “to develop the competence to see and the courage to act in creating a more humane and just society.”

Nupur Goel ’17 is no exception. Goel, a current medical student at Northeast Ohio Medical University, found a unique way to live our mission in the midst of a pandemic and other global crises.

You launched and ran a TEDx talk at NEOMED. Can you explain what your talk was about? I organized and hosted the first-ever TEDxNEOMED event at my medical school, the Northeast Ohio Medical University. The theme of our inaugural event was “The Call to Heal: Healing Ourselves, Our Neighbors, And Our World.” Too often, our culture has exclusively attributed healing to the medical field. While the connection between healing and medicine is important, healing can also refer to amending and transcending aspects of our own lives, the lives of those around us, and our societal institutions. As a future physician, I have devoted my life to acting as a healer in my professional community. However, as a current medical student, I could not turn a blind eye to the injustices in my personal community. In the face of a global pandemic and political unrest, our world needs healing now more than ever before. I wanted to provide a space for members of my community to discuss these global issues and propose solutions.

During the event, the TEDx speakers shared their definitions of what it means to “heal.” I introduced each talk and encouraged the audience to listen with an open mind and heart. The talks ranged from learning how to live from the dying, to embracing the imperfections of one’s journey, and even how a “Parkour mindset” can help create positive microcultures.

How did you come up with the idea? What inspired you? I remember the moment very clearly. It was a Saturday night, and I was sitting on my couch, sobbing. I thought to myself, “Another day, another mass killing.” My cries were quickly muddled by the sound of news reporters on the television, discussing the recent El Paso and Dayton shootings. As the media discussed casualties and the growing issue of gun violence in our country, I felt an overwhelming sense of helplessness. Sitting on the couch that evening, I realized that I had to endeavor to make a difference. I instantly decided to use these tragic events as inspiration rather than as fuel for continued cynicism and doubt.

I have always dreamed about the day that I would present a novel, groundbreaking idea, one that would inspire people to pursue positive and substantive change. It hadn’t occurred to me until I was sitting dejected on my couch in my pajamas that the opportunity right now was to be an agent of healing.

That night, I stayed up until three in the morning researching and learning about the process for organizing a TEDx event. Hosting a TEDx event gave me hope of cultivating change and contributing to society, even as a busy medical school student.

Was there anything you did at Gilmour that prepared you for this? The obvious answer is my involvement in Speech and Debate. Participating in this club, under Ms. Janis’ mentorship, was instrumental in my development as an effective and skilled communicator. However, if I ponder this question further, I cannot help but mention the other, more subtle, ways that the Academy prepared me. The English and history courses I took at Gilmour trained me to look at the world through a broad, humanitarian lens. The intense workload and expectations prepared me to balance my academics and extracurricular commitments. The words of the late Mr. Tiesl remind me to ask, “What more can I do?” for those around me. The personalized experience gave me the confidence to act as a leader in my academic community. My success in medical school and with the TEDxNEOMED project is rooted in my Gilmour education, the teachers I learned from and the peers I spent four years with.

Can you expound on how this ties to our Gilmour mission? The purpose of TEDxNEOMED ties in perfectly with the Gilmour mission which, to me, means to think and act outside of yourself. It means that recognizing injustice is nothing, unless you work to change it. It means to develop the vocational drive to leave the world better than when you arrived. This event was born out of my observation of injustice and courage to make a difference. The event has resulted in a space for the NEOMED community to access their humanitarian side. The talks have catalyzed a global conversation about how we can make the world more righteous and just. Can you tell me more about what you're doing now? What are you studying at NEOMED? What are your plans for the future? I am just finishing up my third year of medical school. I will graduate in May of 2023 with my Doctor of Medicine degree. I am extremely passionate about neuroscience and I plan to become an Interventional Neurologist with a focus in Vascular Neurology or Neuro-Critical Care. Regardless of my specialty, I will continue to develop my skills as a public speaker and organizational leader.

Nupur at the TEDxNEOMED event at Northeast Ohio Medical University