Prominent Physician Dr. Benjamin Carson Keynotes Mississippi College Scholarship Dinner

A prominent American physician and author, Dr. Benjamin Carson will be the keynote speaker at Mississippi College’s spring scholarship dinner on April 22, 2014.

The annual event on the Clinton campus opened doors for outstanding students to receive an education at the Baptist-affiliated university. Other noteworthy speakers in the MC series have included former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in 2013 and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in 2012.

In recent months, Dr. Carson has been a stern critic of the federal Affordable Care Act, a hot topic in the halls of Congress and for millions of Americans.

A highly regarded motivational speaker, Dr. Carson has addressed audiences nationwide from school systems to civic groups and corporations. He’s twice spoken during the President’s National Prayer Breakfast.

“Dr. Ben Carson is an immensely talented pediatric neurosurgeon, motivational speaker and author of remarkably successful inspirational books,” said Ron Howard, vice president for academic affairs. He gives high marks to Dr. Carson’s 1990 book “Gifted Hands” that “reveals a man of deep commitment, real grit and perseverance. He overcame long odds to become a world class surgeon and opinion maker.”

A political science professor at the Baptist-affiliated university, Howard admires Dr. Carson as a man with conservative values who “speaks his mind on the issues of the day. You can bet what he says will be both interesting and provocative.”

Dr. Carson grew up in a single parent home and was challenged by dire poverty, a horrible temper, low self-esteem and poor grades, but didn’t let that stop his childhood dream of becoming a physician.

He persevered and today is an emeritus professor of neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery and pediatrics at the John Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. He directed pediatric neurosurgery at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center for 39 years. Dr. Carson was the inaugural recipient of a professorship in his name in May 2008, and retired in June 2013.

Dr. Carson holds more than 60 honorary doctorates and received hundreds of awards and citations during his career.

In 2004, he was appointed by President George W. Bush to the President’s Council on Bioethics. In 2001, Dr. Carson was named by CNN and “Time” magazine as one of the nation’s 20 foremost physicians and scientists.

His first four books, including “Gifted Hands,” and “THINK Big,” provide inspiration and insight for living a successful life. His fifth book, “America The Beautiful: Rediscovering What Made This Nation Great” was a “New York Times” bestseller in 2012. His next book, “One Nation” is set for release in May 2014.

A prolific author, Dr. Carson also writes a weekly opinion column for “The Washington Times” and is a FOX News contributor. He is president and co-founder of the Carson Scholars Fund, which recognizes young people of all backgrounds for exceptional academic and humanitarian accomplishments. The fund operates in all 50 states and has awarded more than $5.6 million to more than 5,600 scholars.

Married for over 38 years to his wife, Candy, Dr. Carson is the father of three sons.

Tickets for the 6:30 p.m. dinner at Anderson Hall that Tuesday evening are $200. Dr. Carson is also expected to address Mississippi College students and meet with the news media before delivering his speech to hundreds of MC supporters. The spring scholarship dinner began at Mississippi College in 2008 with former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole serving as the keynote speaker. The events have raised more than $1.6 million for student scholarships over the years.

For more information on the Mississippi College 2014 Scholarship Dinner, contact Amy Rowan of the university’s Office of Advancement at 601.925.9257 or Rowan@mc.edu.

Tickets are also available for purchase online.