The University of Toledo College of Arts and Sciences will welcome renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Carson to speak Thursday, April 15, at 7:30 p.m. in Savage Arena.
Carson
Carson, director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, led a team in 1987 that successfully separated twins conjoined at the head. Previous operations always had resulted in the death of one or both of the twins.
“As a surgeon, public speaker and author, Dr. Carson represents the wide spectrum of disciplines of our college, from the natural sciences to social sciences and humanities,” said Dr. Nina McClelland, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “His is an incredibly inspirational story, and it’s my hope that students may see a part of their future in his life story.”
McClelland and Dr. Rosemary Haggett, UT Main Campus provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, will provide welcoming remarks, and UT President Lloyd Jacobs will introduce Carson.
Carson’s memoir, Gifted Hands, was adapted for a movie of the same name featuring Cuba Gooding Jr. as the doctor.
Born in Detroit, Carson and his brother were raised by their mother, Sonya. In the fifth grade, Carson was at the bottom of his class when his mother decided to turn her sons’ lives around. She limited their TV viewing, made homework a priority, and required them to read and write reports on two library books each week.
After graduating from high school with honors, Carson attended Yale University for a degree in psychology and the University of Michigan for a doctor of medicine degree in neurosurgery. Carson served as a neurosurgery resident at Johns-Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, later becoming the hospital’s director of pediatric neurosurgery.
Named a Living Legend by the U.S. Library of Congress, Carson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008 by President George W. Bush.
The free, public event is part of the yearlong centennial celebration of the College of Arts and Sciences.
