U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina M. Benjamin to Deliver Commencement Address at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences

ALBANY, N.Y., March 10 /PRNewswire/ -- James J. Gozzo, Ph.D., President of Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, announced today that U.S. Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin, M.D., M.B.A., has agreed to serve as the College's 2010 commencement speaker.

Dr. Benjamin is the 18th Surgeon General of the United States Public Health Service. As "America's Doctor," she helps protect and advance the health of the nation through educating the public and advocating for effective disease prevention and health promotion programs. The Office of the Surgeon General is also responsible for elevating the quality of public health practice in the professional disciplines through the advancement of appropriate standards and research priorities.

"As an institution committed to the advancement of health, it is a tremendous honor to have Dr. Benjamin, the woman who each day places the nation's health as her top priority, agree to serve as our 2010 commencement speaker," said Dr. Gozzo. "It is especially opportune to have the Surgeon General speak to our graduates and our community at a time when the issue of quality and affordable health care continues to be a concern for many Americans."

"As Surgeon General, I want to provide the nation with the best scientific information available on how to live healthier lives," said Dr. Benjamin. "I will also try to bring clarity and understanding to the overwhelmingly confusing conversations about health and healthcare."

"Institutions such as Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences play an important role in this process, by educating tomorrow's pharmacists and other health care professionals," she said.

Dr. Benjamin is Founder and Former CEO of the Bayou La Batre Rural Health Clinic in Alabama and immediate Past Chair of the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States. In 1995, she was the first physician under age 40 and the first African-American woman to be elected to the American Medical Association Board of Trustees. She served as President of the American Medical Association Education and Research Foundation and Chair of the AMA Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (CEJA). In 2002, she became President of the Medical Association State of Alabama, making her the first African American female president of a State Medical Society in the United States.

Dr. Benjamin has strong ties to higher education. She was the former Associate Dean for Rural Health at the University of South Alabama College of Medicine in Mobile. She earned her B.S. in chemistry from Xavier University in New Orleans; an M.D. degree from the University of Alabama, Birmingham; and an MBA from Tulane University. She also has five Honorary Doctorates.

ACPHS will hold its 130th commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 8 at 2:00 p.m. at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center.

About Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences

Founded in 1881, Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences is a private, independent institution committed to the advancement of health. The College has academic programs and research activities spanning the full spectrum of pharmacy and health sciences – from drug discovery to patient care.  Nearly 1,600 ACPHS students are pursuing a wide range of career pathways in health related fields through degree programs in pharmacy, pharmaceutical sciences, biomedical technology and health and human sciences. The College's main campus is located in Albany, New York; its satellite campus is in Colchester, Vermont. For more information, please visit www.acphs.edu.

SOURCE Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences