Atlanta - Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) will celebrate its 1,000th graduate as the prestigious Atlanta-based medical school observes commencement exercises May 17, 2008.

This year, the 33-year old institution also will graduate its largest M.D. program class. A total of 51 graduates will receive the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degree; three will become Doctors of Philosophy (Ph.D.); 11 will receive the Master of Public Health (M.P.H.) degree; and one will be conferred with the Master of Science in Clinical Research (M.S.C.R.) degree.

Addressing the graduates will be Helene Gayle, M.D., M.P.H., president and CEO of CARE USA. She is the first woman and first person of color to lead the international premiere humanitarian organization in its 62-year history.

For more than two decades, first as head of international AIDS research at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Ga., and then as director of the HIV, TB, and Reproductive Health division at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Gayle has devoted herself to efforts to treat and prevent the epidemic spread of the human immunodeficiency virus or HIV - the virus that may lead to AIDS. Her work has taken her to cities throughout the world, including Kinshasa, Zaire; Abidjan, Ivory Coast; and Bangkok, Thailand. At the CDC, Gayle oversaw the efforts of more than 300 scientists who interpreted and published data covering all facets of the HIV infection.

MSM will confer upon Gayle an honorary Doctor of Science degree. Receiving an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree will be Founder and Publisher of Black Enterprise magazine Earl G. Graves Sr.
The MSM Commencement will be held at the Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel at 830 Westview Drive SW, Atlanta, GA, beginning at *9 a.m. ET.

What: Morehouse School of Medicine Twenty-Fourth Commencement Exercises
When: 9 a.m., Saturday, May 17, 2008
Where: Martin Luther King Jr. International Chapel, 830 Westview Drive SW, Atlanta, GA 30314

More MSM 2008 Commencement Stories

Ruby S. Thomas
Since entering medical school, Ruby Thomas has excelled academically. She is set to graduate magna cum laude from MSM. As a third-year medical student, Thomas was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha honor medical society. She graduated summa cum laude from Xavier University and was accepted into MSM on a full tuition scholarship. Thomas's scores on the United States Medical Licensing Exams steps 1 and 2 are considered above the national average.

Thomas and MSM graduate Kamille I. Brown recently returned from Ghana, West Africa after participating in the General Electric Foundation and National Medical Fellowships, Inc. (GE/NMF) 2008 Medical Scholars Program. Thomas and Brown were selected through a national competition for the two-month clinical/public health elective. The program is held in conjunction with the University of Ghana Medical School and focuses on areas of critical need such as HIV/AIDS, diabetes, tuberculosis, heart disease, cancer, and infant mortality. Thomas will begin a residency in Pediatrics at MSM this summer.

Damayea I. Hargett
An Atlanta resident, Damayea Hargett is making history as the first student of an MSM alumnus to attend and complete studies at MSM. Her mother, Rosa L. King, graduated from MSM in 1991. She was only five years of age when her mother first began classes at MSM. Hargett graduated summa cum laude with honors from Bethune-Cookman College in 2003, with a B.S. in Clinical Laboratory Science. She initially received rejections from 10 medical schools, including MSM. Through early decision, she reapplied the following year to MSM only, and received a favorable response. Hargett, who faced family medical challenges during her first and third years of medical school, will pursue a career in orthopedic surgery - a field that traditionally has included a small percentage of women and minorities.

Erica L. Johnson
MSM Class of 2008 graduate Erica Johnson is the sister of Calvin Johnson, former Georgia Tech football star who was drafted last year in the first round of the National Football League to play for the Detroit Lions as a wide receiver.

As an MSM student, in 2006, Johnson was one of only 500 Ph.D. students in the United States invited to the meeting of Nobel Science Laureates in Lindau, Germany, where she had the opportunity to present and discuss her research on cancer with Nobel Prize winners from around the world.

Brandi C. Cruse Brandon
Another graduate marching with the MSM Class of 2008 is Brandi Cruse Brandon. Brandon received her Ph.D. from MSM in December and is working as a postdoctoral research fellow at Emory University's Winship Cancer Center. Her interest in breast cancer research stemmed from the loss of her mother to the disease, and she has dedicated her life to curing this disease to help others, both those suffering from the disease themselves and their families.

*Media Ops available before, during and following MSM 2008 Commencement