Outstanding Young Alumni
Melissa Alvarez-Downing, MD
Awarded 2018
Most college students believe that they have the potential to effect positive change, but often question if they are on the right path. For Dr. Melissa Alvarez-Downing, she always knew her career path would lead her to help others.
Today, the mother of three is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark, New Jersey, specializing in colon and rectal surgery. One of the youngest surgeons in her field, she is truly a rising star according to her colleagues and credits Sam Houston State University professors for steering her trajectory.
Dr. Alvarez-Downing excelled in both science and sports from a young age. Taking honors classes through the Elliott T. Bowers Honors College, she was an Orange Key, ran cross country and track for all four years and graduated Magna Cum Laude with honors in 2000.
The path you take can have a significant impact on your destination in life, as Dr. Alvarez-Downing knows. She planned to earn a PhD in Chemistry, and then teach until faculty from the College of Arts and Sciences convinced her to consider a career in medicine.
After graduating from SHSU with honors, Dr. Alvarez-Downing attended the prestigious Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, and received Board Certification from the American Board of Surgery in 2011 and the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery in 2015.
Dr. Anne Mosenthal, chair of the Rutgers NJMS Department of Surgery commented, “She is well-trained and has a wonderful bedside manner. The patients love her, the families love her.”
Dr. Anastasia Kunac, program director for Rutgers NJMS General Surgery Residency echoed those sentiments, noting that Alvarez-Downing is “both passionate and compassionate, caring for patients and their families with incredible enthusiasm,” adding, “… I think for years to come she will be a role model.”
“And, that is true of Melissa as an educator as well,” Dr. Mosenthal added, “She is particularly interested in education and training the next generation, and that is what we are about here.”
Dr. Alvarez-Downing is a life member of the SHSU Alumni Association and provides support to the Chemistry and Elliot. T Bowers Honor College.