Dr. Lori Arviso Alvord

Dr. Lori Arviso Alvord was the first Navajo female surgeon. Today, she serves as the Associate Dean of Students and Multicultural Affairs for Dartmouth at the Medical School. She also holds an assistant professorships in surgery and psychiatry.

Alvord's story tells much more about her life than her current occupation. Alvord grew up in Crownpoint, a small town on the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico. Though she had a white mother, Alvord was fundamentally raised Navajo, in Navajo culture. However, her parents encouraged her to get an education and when she went to college, she found her way into science and ultimately medicine. College at Dartmouth and medical school at Stanford were challenging for her, as it was difficult for someone with her unique background to fit in.

In Alvord's medical practice, she was fundamentally challenged to choose between her Navajo cultural heritage and the...