 Ashley
Marlowe Lankford M.D. ’88
2007-08 Recipient
»Biography
»Acceptance Speech
Biography
Dr.
Ashley Marlowe Lankford ’88 had dreams of becoming a
physician for as long as she could remember. Louisville Collegiate
School taught her the importance of learning for the sake
of gaining knowledge. This led Ashley to the University of
Louisville where she graduated with a B.A. in Political Science
before graduating from the U of L School of Medicine Cum Laude
in 1997. She completed her residency at Memorial Health University
Medical Center in Savannah, Georgia where she was featured
on the television show “Code Blue” on The Learning
Channel, for her work with Level One traumas.
After completing her general surgery residency,
Ashley returned to Louisville to establish a solo private
practice based at Floyd Memorial Hospital in Southern Indiana.
Ashley said “perhaps in this era of rapid changes in
healthcare opening my practice has been my biggest accomplishment
as very few people have the courage to ‘hang a shingle’
and start their own practice anymore.”
Ashley has been published in medical journals
and also has received many honors and special awards including:
Janet M. Glasgow Memorial Achievement Citation, Intern of
the Year at Memorial Health University Medical Center, The
Resident’s Award in Trauma Surgery, Phi Kappa Phi National
Honor Society, Golden Key National Honor Society and American
Medical Womens’ Association, Inc.
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Acceptance
Speech
Young Alumni Achievement
Award
- May 2008
I would like to thank you very much for this
award. As this is reunion weekend, I just had my 20th class
reunion last night visiting with my classmates and seeing
all they have accomplished I was even more honored and humbled
to be this year’s recipient. To tell you the truth I
am still in shock that 20 years have passed since my graduation.
I still remember our state field hockey championship like
it was yesterday. Much has changed with the bigger buildings
and new facade of the campus here at Collegiate. I have watched
in amazement over the last few years to see the construction
of stately and impressive campus that reflects the quality
of education behind the bricks and mortar.
Recently I had the distinct privilege of
an LCS student follow me at work to see what it was like to
be in solo private practice in general surgery during changing
times in healthcare. I explained that it is possible to succeed
in a traditionally male dominated field. It is possible to
be successful and establish and independent business when
most around you join on in a group. It is in fact possible
to excel when some around you want you to fail. In order to
be successful in any field; however, you need to capitalize
on your strengths, acknowledge your weakness and maintain,
or try to, ability, determination and compassion in the face
of adversity. I have doctors say they would never go into
medicine again. Not me, I love it. I love the challenges and
the continuing and evolving knowledge base necessary to continue
success. It is part of who I am. I believe that mindset began
here at Collegiate in 1985.
As I explained this to her, I saw the same eagerness and youthful
enthusiasm I felt during my interim weeks in high school so
long ago. My friends now have children that attend LCS and
I know from our discussions the campus my look different,
but the fundamental principles have not changed.
In my years here I learned how to learn.
Our teachers here unparalleled in their ability to infuse
willing young minds with wealth of knowledge on a broad number
of subjects. Perhaps as important as teaching those who learned
quickly was their patience and perseverance in teaching subjects
that didn’t come naturally to me. I still don’t
understand why math equations have letters in them. Poor Mrs.
Faulk sure developed an ulcer trying to help me figure this
out. Luckily the Admissions figured I could be a poor math
student and good doctor simultaneously. I learned gross anatomy
despite my fear of pithing a frog in the tenth grade. But
I was taught that my education was my experience. We were
all given the freedom to explore the class and extracurricular
activities that were intellectually stimulation to us individually.
It was during my first interim week in the tenth grade I shadowed
a surgeon in town and knew with as much certainty as a sixteen
year old can; I too wanted to be a physician.
I think we would be hard pressed to find
anyone to criticize an LCS education or college preparation.
But there is more to this school than learning to write a
term paper or taking A.P. History. The small class size meant
we all knew our classmates very well. We were all very close
and drew from each others strengths and helped on another
through harder or challenging times. Our senior lounge was
a place where we shared our joys and sometimes our sadness
and frustration. We learned to listen to each other and respect
our similarities and often our differences. These moments
were sometimes as critical and life changing as learning the
Pythagorean theorem or how to footnote correctly.
To close, I must say thank you. To Ms. Sallie
Bingham for paving the way for women professionals. And. Mrs.
Cindy Skarbek for fostering Collegiate’s mission to
everyone. And to everyone here, for helping me be the kind
of woman worthy of this award.
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