Kirsten Grubb, a third-year medical student at New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine at Arkansas State University (NYITCOM at A-State), has been awarded the inaugural Ritter Family Foundation scholarship, the medical school and the foundation announced.
The Ritter Family Foundation scholarship was established last fall to financially support medical students who are from the Delta region of Arkansas and/or aspire to ultimately practice in the region. The foundation is operated by Ritter family members as well as current and retired employees of E. Ritter & Company, a fifth-generation, family-owned business founded in 1889 and headquartered in Marked Tree.
“The Ritter Family Foundation is passionate about helping address the needs of Arkansas communities like the ones that multiple generations of our family have served for decades,” said Erik Kesting, E. Ritter & Company CEO. “NYITCOM at A-State’s commitment to improving access to healthcare in rural Arkansas aligns perfectly with our foundation’s mission. We are incredibly proud to support NYITCOM at A-State’s future physicians through this scholarship.”
Scholarship applicants were required to submit a brief essay explaining why they aspire to practice in a medically underserved Arkansas community.
Grubb, a Paragould native who completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Alabama before returning to Northeast Arkansas for medical school, plans to specialize in emergency medicine upon graduation from NYITCOM.
“I can’t thank the Ritter Family Foundation enough for their generous support,” Grubb said. “I grew up in a rural part of our state and my family has certainly been affected the physician shortage that exists here. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to eventually practice in Northeast Arkansas and serve my community through medicine.”