Episode 10: Latoya Mclean

February 3, 2019

I was born here, but I grew up in Jamaica and I moved back to the states when I was about 12 or 13 years old.

My childhood in Jamaica was great. It was a more relaxed and family-oriented lifestyle. I grew up with all my cousins under one roof on my grandpa’s estate. Although I only have three siblings, it always felt like I was part of a larger immediate family. My fondest memory about my time in Jamaica was going to the horse racing derbies with my grandpa. On weekends, he would take a few of us kids to spend the day with him in the town and at the tracks. I was his favorite, so I got to go often and that was nice. That was my childhood; spending time with my family and enjoying all that my island paradise had to offer. Unfortunately, I don't go home as often as when I was younger.

During my high school years, I got really involved in planning and executing local volunteering events. I got involved with this specific organization called buildOn (buildOn.org). Through their program, we raised enough money so that two students from my high school chapter could go to Nicaragua and build a school in a remote village with limited education and healthcare accessibility. While on this trek, we participated in several different cultural workshops. And one of the workshops was healthcare related- this was a remote village with the closest hospital being two hours away. We learned that there was a “medicine man” assigned to this village with no formal medical training. I remember being both saddened and overwhelmed by the entire ordeal. It was just sad and that's what prompted me to apply to medical school and become a doctor.

My parents are my greatest inspiration. They were both highly decorated members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (police force) and sacrificed everything to come to America. When they first arrived in Connecticut, my dad couldn’t afford to commute to work in the city each day, so, he would sleep on the floors in Grand Central. My mom worked several under the table odd jobs including: dog walking, making pasta, or nannying in nearby wealthy suburbs to put herself through school. I lived in Jamaica while my parents worked hard to stabilize themselves here and I would visit during my school holidays. During one of my trips my mother had a chemistry lab practical and couldn’t find a babysitter. She showed up to her exam with this little girl and her professor told her that she couldn’t bring me into the lab. She told him she had no one to watch me, but she insisted on taking her exam that day. The professor ended up watching me outside the room while she took her exam. They're my biggest inspiration because if they can make it from literally nothing - they started over, then there's no reason why I can't.

Something I like about myself is that I am a genuine and nice person. In my experience, the world can be such a devastating place filled with so much hatred and divisiveness. You just have to remember to be kind to other people.

I don’t like that I'm so high stress because I feel like I stress myself out and then I stress out everyone around me!

I've always wanted to just take a year and travel. I’ve been to Mexico and Canada a few times. I've been to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, England, Ireland, The Netherlands, France.

I really want to go to the Canary Islands. And I want to go to Spain and Balearic Islands off its coast, Italy, Greece, Brazil, Belize, Nigeria, Japan and South Africa. Honestly, I want to visit every country at least once!

I love being around different cultures and the exposure to new experiences. It’s a great escape. And I just love that. Usually when I travel, I try to get an Airbnb or stay somewhere close to the locals for a portion of my trip. That's like my favorite part of traveling - having the most authentic experience

What are your 5 most recently played artists on Spotify?
Most of my playlist right now are Jamaican artists. Vybez Kartel, Shensea, Dovey Magnum, Chance, Rihanna

If you could have any superpower which one would you choose?
I would have the power of persuasion because you can get out of any jam. You can get anything you want. I can persuade the dean to just give me my medical degree.

Pick something or someone from NYMC to give a shout-out to!
Shoutout to Charles and Rubaya - my study group.

If someone wanted to talk to you, they should lead with...?
Hey girl!