Atlanta Christian College announced today that Dr. David Satcher, director of The Satcher Health Leadership Institute at Morehouse School of Medicine and former Surgeon General of the United States, will speak at this year’s commencement exercises. Commencement will be held May 8 at New Hope Baptist Church in Fayetteville, Ga.
Dr. Satcher graduated from Morehouse College in Atlanta in 1963 and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He holds M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.
In 1998, Dr. Satcher was sworn in as the 16th Surgeon General of the United States. He also served as Assistant Secretary for Health in the Department of Health and Human Services from February 1998 to January 2001, making him only the second person in history to have held both positions simultaneously. His tenure of public service also includes serving as director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and administrator of the Toxic Substances and Disease Registry from 1993 to 1998. He was the first person to have served as director of the CDC and Surgeon General of the United States.
Dr. Satcher established The Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI) at Morehouse School of Medicine in 2006 as a natural extension of his experience in improving public health policy for all Americans and his commitment to eliminating health disparities for minorities, poor people and other disadvantaged groups.
“Dr. Satcher is a great example of a Kingdom-minded man who is willing to use his God-given talents, along with his tremendous academic preparation, to influence not only our country, but also the world by providing necessary health information and advocacy to many underserved populations,” said Dean Collins, president of Atlanta Christian College. “We are honored to have a person of his stature speak to our ACC family and our newest graduating class.”
A proponent of healthy lifestyles through physical activity and good nutrition, Dr. Satcher is an avid runner, rower, and gardener. He attends First Christian Church of Jonesboro, Ga. Dr. Satcher and his wife, Nola, a poet, reside in Atlanta, and have four grown children and four grandchildren.
