Press Release

Bunker Hill Community College Student Represents Massachusetts at National Convention

Monday, March 22, 2010

Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Director of the Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital, will be the keynote speaker at Bunker Hill Community College’s 36th commencement exercises, on Saturday, June 5th at 11 a.m. In 2008, Dr. Carson received the nation’s highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Dr. Carson, one of the world’s leading neurosurgeons, is also an eminent scholar, author and philanthropist. For years he has used his excellent speaking skills to motivate people to better themselves.

Carson grew up poor in the inner city of Detroit. His early life was marked by constant struggle to overcome his background, especially in school. In his autobiographical work, “Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story,” he recounts failing tests and not “making the grade.” But, thanks to an encouraging mother and an iron will to succeed, he went to Yale University on a full scholarship.
At Yale, he received a B.A. in Psychology, and then went on to earn his M.D. from the University of Michigan School of Medicine.

Carson is renowned for his innovative and groundbreaking neurosurgeries. He has been widely praised for his expertise in surgical treatment of all types of  brain seizures. One of his most famous surgeries involved separating twins joined at their heads.

At Johns Hopkins Hospital, he holds professorships in four specialties: Neurological Surgery, Oncology, Pediatrics, and Plastic Surgery. He has received 40 honorary doctorate degrees and hundreds of other awards. He is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society, and is an emeritus fellow of the Yale Corporation, the governing body of Yale.

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About Bunker Hill Community College
Bunker Hill Community College is the largest community college in Massachusetts, enrolling approximately 18,000 students annually. BHCC has two campuses in Charlestown and Chelsea, and a number of other locations throughout the Greater Boston area. BHCC is one of the most diverse institutions of higher education in Massachusetts. Sixty-five percent of the students are people of color and more than half of BHCC's students are women. The College also enrolls nearly 600 international students who come from 94 countries and speak more than 75 languages.