2022 Tillman Scholar

Amanda Higginson

Navy
Syracuse University
Juris Doctor

“I am an inspiring people connector dedicated to promoting a positive growth experience at critical transitions in medicine and life by helping build a network of support and resources.”

Adopted as an infant, Amanda’s upbringing in South Florida was anything but typical. Her father, shot and paralyzed in the Vietnam War, taught her about extreme resilience and persistence in the face of adversity. Wanting to give back to military medicine, Amanda received a Navy Health Professions Scholarship and earned her medical degree at the Alpert Medical School at Brown University. She completed her residency in Pediatrics at the now Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Bethesda and served on active duty for 7 years alongside her husband, deploying twice.

Currently the interim Associate Dean for Student Affairs at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, Amanda supports students on their journey to achieve their personal, academic, and career goals. She continues to practice general outpatient pediatric medicine, caring for children in a largely rural, underserved area. Choosing to enter law school as a mid-career physician, Amanda saw law school as an opportunity to enhance her advocacy for children particularly related to social determinants of health, as well expand her knowledge of issues that impact the daily functioning of an academic medical center in order to more effectively advocate for her students. At the intersection of law and medicine, Amanda hopes to create structural change both at work and in her community to empower others to live, work, and achieve their goals at their full potential.