Regina Marcia Benjamin
Personal Information
Born: 1956
Country of Birth: USA
Nationality: USA
Ethnicity: Black
Education
1979, BS Chemistry, Xavier University of Louisiana; 1980-1982, Morehouse College of Medicine; 1984, MD, University of Alabama; 1991, MBA, Tulane University
""I had never seen a black doctor before I went to college.""
— Regina Marcia Benjamin
Professional Life
Field of Study: Medicine
Institution/Corporation: Burger King; Kaiser Foundation Hospitals; Surgeon General of the US
Degrees & Memberships: Honorary Degree: holds approximately 30 including Dartmouth College, Albany College of Pharmacy & Health Science, Tulane University, Rensselear Polytechnical Institute, University of Rochester Medical Center School of Medicine & Dentistry, Elizabethtown College; Member: Institute of Medicine; Fellow American Academy of Family Physicians, Kellogg National Fellow, Rockefeller Next Generation Leader;
Awards & Achievements
Awards: 2008, MacArthur Fellowship; USPHS Regular Corps Ribbon; 1997, Nelson Mandela Award for Health & Human Rights; named 1 of the Nations 50 Future Leaders Age 40 and Under by Time Magazine; 1995, Person of the Week, ABC s World News Tonight; Woman of the Year, CBS This Morning; Woman of the Year, People Magazine; 2000, Caring Award; 2006, Papal Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice; 2008, 1 of America s Best Leaders, US News & World Report; 2009, American Medical Association Foundation Leadership Award; 2010, Trumpeter Award, National Consumers League; 2014, The Nichols-Chancellor s Medal, Vanderbilt University; 2011, Chairman s Award, NAACP Image Awards
Achievements: 18th Surgeon General of the United States; first physician under 40 & first African-American elected to the Board of Trustees of the American Medical Association; first African-American female president of a state medical society (Alabama) in the US; campaigned against obesity; campaigned for increased/improved breastfeeding, suicide prevention & preventing child sexual abuse
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