At an event last Friday in Arkansas, Carson was asked about his shifting. [89], While at Johns Hopkins, Carson figured in the revival of the hemispherectomy, a drastic surgical procedure in which part or all of one hemisphere of the brain is removed to control severe pediatric epilepsy. [227][228], Surrounding his confirmation as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Carson bought a $1.22 million home in Vienna, Virginia, in February 2017 and sold his West Palm Beach home for over $900,000 in May 2017. By his second year of medical school, Carson began to excel academically by seldom attending lectures and instead studying textbooks and lecture notes from 6a.m. to 11p.m.[85] Carson graduated from the University of Michigan Medical School with an M.D. Ben Carson, who was already a famous neurosurgeon, did not attend his father's funeral in 1992, according to the step-sister. Carson was also known for having performed the first successful rescue of a hydrocephalic twin using an intrauterine shunt. [163] With his conservative agenda, Carson initially proved popular with Republican voters, and by October 2015 he was among the partys front-runners. I support them in doing that, but I probably would have taken a little different approach. Summary Ben and his older brother Curtis grew up in a poverty stricken Detroit.When he was only eight years old, his father left their family, forcing his mother Sonya to aise them on her oourm Despite her low level education their mother is very intelligent and determined. [238] In a 2013 interview with Adventist News Network, Carson said: "You know, I'm proud of the fact that I believe what God has said, and I've said many times that I'll defend it before anyone. All three of Carson's sons, who have been. If they want to criticize the fact that I believe in a literal, six-day creation, let's have at it because I will poke all kinds of holes in what they believe. Confusion. [173], In total, Carson received 857,039 votes during the Republican primaries; this total represented 2.75% of the votes cast. Dr. Ben Carson overcame obstacles with mom's help. Regarding the Middle East, he also claimed that "the Chinese are there". [62] Carson says he narrowed his college choices to Harvard or Yale but could only afford the $10 application fee to apply for only one of them. Carson was 8 and Curtis, his brother, was 10 when Sonya began to raise them as a single mother, reportedly moving to Boston to live with her sister for a time and eventually returning to. The success of the procedure and the reconstructive techniques employed gained Carson world renown as a pediatric neurosurgeon. You know, obviously, decades later, I'm not going to remember the course number. [5] In 1987, he gained significant fame after leading a team of surgeons in the first known separation of conjoined twins joined at the back of the head. [119], In financial disclosure forms, Carson and his wife reported income of between $8.9 million and $27 million from January 2014 to May 3, 2015, when he announced his presidential campaign. *: These candidates were constitutionally ineligible to serve as President or Vice President. The following year he appeared at the National Prayer Breakfast, a traditionally nonpartisan event organized by the Family, a Christian movement. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. [24][29][31] When they returned to Detroit public schools, Carson and his brother's academic performance initially lagged far behind their new classmates, having, according to Carson, "essentially lost a year of school" by attending the small Seventh-day Adventist parochial school in Boston,[27][29][32] but they both improved when their mother limited their time watching television and required them to read and write book reports on two library books per week. He was born on Sept. 18, 1951. One. [209][210][211], Carson was accused by members of the Department of Housing and Urban Development of making transphobic remarks at a meeting in San Francisco in September 2019. A remarkable book titled "Gifted Hands" tells the personal story of Benjamin Carson, a black kid . [120] Over that period, Carson received over $4 million from 141 paid speeches, between $1.1 million and $6 million in book royalties, between $200,000 and $2 million as a contributor to The Washington Times and Fox News, and between $2 million and $10 million as a member of the boards of Kellogg Co. and Costco Wholesale Corp.[120] He resigned from Costco's board in mid-2015, after serving on it for more than 16 years. His image appeared on the corporation's website in 2014,[106] and in the same year, he praised their "glyconutrient" supplements in a PBS special that was subsequently featured on the site. [182] HUD saw an exodus of career officials during Carson's tenure. [35] He attended the predominantly black Hunter Junior High School for the second half of eighth grade. In a story related by Ben Carson in his 1996 book Gifted Hands and numerous interviews, he wrote that his mother was instrumental for him and his brother to start catching up and making headway in school. [93] Patrick Binder died sometime during the last decade, according to his uncle, who was located by The Washington Post in 2015. Some have suggested that his brother, Curtis Carson, would be a logical . [20] Carson's mother was 13 and his father was 28 when they married, and after his father finished his military service, they moved from Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Detroit,[20][21] where they lived in a large house in the Indian Village neighborhood. [135][136], On November 4, 2014, the day of the 2014 midterms, he rejoined the Republican Party, saying it was "truly a pragmatic move" because he was considering running for president in 2016. Ben writes the book himself, so everything is in the first person. He later became active in politics and served as U.S. secretary of housing and urban development (HUD; 201721) in the administration of U.S. Pres. He could have been offered a scholarship by a private donor if he applied for admission and attended. Study Guides . Any reporting to the contrary is false. The school is partnering with Detroit Receiving Hospital and Michigan State University.[255]. [93] On the condition the film would have its premiere in Baltimore,[93] Carson agreed to a cameo appearance as "head surgeon" in the 2003 Farrelly brothers' comedy Stuck on You, starring Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear as conjoined twins who, unhappy after their surgical separation, continue life attached to each other by Velcro. [87], Upon returning to Johns Hopkins in 1984, Carson was appointed the university's director of pediatric neurosurgery. Such moves were met with opposition, as critics alleged that he failed to understand the complexities of the issues. On doing so, Carson said he was congratulated by the course instructor, who told him the retest was a hoax intended to find "the most honest student in the class". [106][110][111] His most recent paid speech for the company was in 2013, for which he was paid $42,000. Ben Carson was born on September 15, 1951 in Detroit, Michigan. Williams was paid $4,700 a month this year up until June, FEC records show. Carson's relationship with Mannatech continued after the company paid $7 million in 2009 to settle a deceptive-marketing lawsuit in Texas over claims that its products could cure autism and cancer. [152] They spent $150,000 on the ads, which were aired in Atlanta, Detroit and Miami. And why would he torment somebody forever who only had a life of 60 or 70 or 80 years? [78] At Yale, Carson had a part-time job on campus as a student police aide. Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon and politician who served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021. Dr. Ben Carson has an older brother named Curtis. Here's a snapshot of the new HUD secretary: Full name: Benjamin Solomon Carson. Today it might seem impossible to imagine that this brilliant neurosurgeon was once a poor student in school. The Wall Street Journal attempted to verify Carson's account, reporting that Yale undergraduate courses were identified with only two digits in the early 1970s, that Yale had offered no course called "Perceptions 301" at the time, and that Carson's photo had never appeared in the Yale Daily News. He also was highly critical of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. And animals will breathe a sigh of relief. [14] Carson is one of the most prominent Black conservatives in America.[15]. [108] When the CNBC moderator commented that Carson was on Mannatech's website, Carson replied that he had not given his permission. Since the 1980s, his surgeries to separate conjoined twins have made international headlines, and his pioneering techniques have revolutionized the field of neurosurgery. [197], On March 1, 2020, the office of Vice President Mike Pence announced Carson's addition to the White House Coronavirus Task Force. Joins Galectin Therapeutics as Special Consultant to Accelerate and Enhance Development of Company's Galectin-3 Inhibitor, Belapectin", "A Candid Interview With Dr. Ben S. Carson, M.D. Carson's mom would make ends meet . [97], According to The Washington Post, the Binder surgery "launched the stardom" of Carson, who "walked out of the operating room that day into a spotlight that has never dimmed", beginning with a press conference that was covered worldwide and created name recognition leading to publishing deals and a motivational speaking career. [177], On December 5, 2016, Trump announced that he would nominate Carson to the position of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. After the couple separated, Carson and his brother Curtis lived with their mother. [191][192] Carson's wife, son, and daughter-in-law also attended official meetings. [121] Carson was chairman of the Baltimore-based biotechnology company Vaccinogen from August 2014[122] until the announcement of his US presidential bid in May 2015. They were very poor and Sonya had to . [6] His additional accomplishments include performing the first successful neurosurgical procedure on a fetus inside the womb, developing new methods to treat brain-stem tumors, and revitalizing hemispherectomy techniques for controlling seizures. [191] In February 2018, the HUD inspector general's office confirmed that it was looking into the role Carson's family played at the department. "[176] He was eventually offered the position of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, which he accepted. He then questioned the extent of the effort CNN had exerted in the investigation. [129] The speech garnered Carson considerable attention because the event is normally apolitical in nature, and the speech was critical of the philosophy and policies of President Barack Obama, who was sitting 10 feet away. Patrick swayze's character in the. Ultimately, Boehner resigned in October 2015, and Paul Ryan was elected as the new Speaker. [193], During congressional testimony in May 2019, while being questioned by U.S. Representative Katie Porter,[194] Carson did not know what the term REO ("Real Estate Owned" refers to housing owned by a bank or lending institution post-foreclosure) stood for and confused it with the cookie, Oreo. [93] Carson participated in four subsequent high-risk conjoined-twin separations, including a 1997 operation on craniopagus Zambian twins Joseph and Luka Banda, which resulted in a normal neurological outcome. Carson stepped down as secretary of HUD in January 2021. [104][105], According to CNN, Carson had an "extensive relationship" from 2004 to 2014 with Mannatech, a multi-level marketing company that produces dietary supplements made from substances such as aloe vera extract and larch-tree bark. [28][34] In 1965, at the age of 13, he moved with his mother and brother back to their house on Deacon Street. [29] In 1959, at the age of eight, his parents separated and he moved with his mother and brother to live for two years with his mother's Seventh-day Adventist older sister and her sister's husband in multi-family dwellings in the Dorchester and Roxbury neighborhoods of Boston. Now that he has jumped into the fray, opening his mouth one too many times, I know he has. [75] Carson said he would have readily accepted his responsibility to fight had he been drafted,[75] but he "identified strongly with the anti-war protesters and the revolutionaries" and enthusiastically voted for anti-war Democratic presidential candidate George McGovern in 1972. During his speech, Carson voiced sympathies for the long discredited belief that the pyramids of Giza were built by the biblical figure Joseph to store grain. Carson's parents were Robert Solomon Carson Jr. (19141992), a World War II U.S. Army veteran, and Sonya Carson (ne Copeland, 19282017). That's pretty much where the story of Carson's father at least as. At the age of eight (8), Ben's parents had divorced and so he had to live with his mother and brother, spending a brief period in Boston, Massachusetts, US; where his maternal family resides, and then back to Detroit. "[212][213], In 1994, Carson and his wife started the Carson Scholars Fund that awards scholarships to students in grades 411 for "academic excellence and humanitarian qualities". He grew up attending Detroit public school, and his mother worked multiple jobs to provide for him and his brother . [156], Carson said he is not opposed to a Palestinian state, but he questioned why it needs "to be within the confines of Israeli territory Is that necessary, or can you sort of slip that area down into Egypt? "As a teenager, I would go after people with rocks, and bricks, and baseball bats, and hammers", Carson told NBC's Meet the Press in October 2015. Two others are about his personal philosophies of success and what he sees as the stabilizing influence of religion. He also believes the Baltic states, current NATO members, should "get involved in NATO". In 1997, in a 28-hour-long operation, he led a team of South African and Zambian surgeons in a separation of twins conjoined at the top of the head (type 2 vertical craniopagus twins). As of 2023, Ben Carson's net worth currently stands at $35 million. [195][196] In response, Carson went on the Fox Business Network where he accused Democrats of adhering to "Saul Alinsky" tactics. Pit crews arrived late during the race for . Carson has been awarded 38 honorary doctorate degrees and dozens of national merit citations. [101], Carson has written many articles in peer-reviewed journals[102] and six bestselling books[103] published by Zondervan, an international Christian media and publishing company. ', "New front-runner Ben Carson faces closer scrutiny of his life story", "Benjamin S. Carson, M.D. [40] Carson served as a laboratory assistant in the high school's biology, chemistry, and physics school laboratories beginning in grades 10, 11, and 12, respectively,[45] and worked as a biology laboratory assistant at Wayne State University the summer between grade 11 and 12. [155], In a November 2015 Republican debate, Carson declared his intentions to make ISIS "look like losers" as he would "destroy their caliphate". He declined, in part because of his lack of experience, with an aide stating, "The last thing he would want to do was take a position that could cripple the presidency. "[131] Regarding the policies of President Obama, he said: "There are a number of policies that I don't believe lead to the growth of our nation and don't lead to the elevation of our nation. [11] Following widespread speculation of a presidential run, Carson officially announced his campaign for the 2016 Republican nomination for President in May 2015. His brother Benjamin is still alive and living in a nursing home in Germany. Clackamas' Jeremiah Wachsmuth a state champion and a national champion: Oregon wrestling 113/105 big . [222] In 1981 Carson's wife became pregnant with twins before miscarrying in the fifth month of her pregnancy. Please select which sections you would like to print: Alternate titles: Benjamin Solomon Carson, Sr. Kara Rogers is the senior editor of biomedical sciences at Encyclopdia Britannica, where she oversees a range of content from medicine and genetics to microorganisms. He received the support of seven delegates at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. "[146], In October, it was noted that Carson's "improbable" political career had surged in polls and fundraising, while he continued to participate in nationally televised Republican debates. News. March 19, 2013. Ben Carson, in full Benjamin Solomon Carson, Sr., (born September 18, 1951, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.), American politician and neurosurgeon who performed the first successful separation of conjoined twins who were attached at the back of the head (occipital craniopagus twins). Neurosurgeon, medical director, foundation executive and author Dr. Benjamin Solomon Carson, Sr. was born on September 18, 1951 in Detroit Michigan, to Sonya and Robert Solomon Carson. George W. Bush. While at Yale, he met Lacena (Candy) Rustin; the couple married in 1975 and had three children. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). [206] Carson and his spokesman said that he had little or no involvement in the purchase of the dining set. Ben attended Southwestern High School and later joined Yale University. He was born in Detroit, Michigan where he lived with his parents. His height is 1.83 m tall, and his weight is 80 kg. In March 2020 he was appointed to the governments task force handling the coronavirus pandemic. 1. [59][41][60][61] He wanted to attend college farther away than his brother who was at the University of Michigan. [2] [3] [4] While in his initial years of school, Carson was an average student. [93][98], In March 2013, Carson announced he would retire as a surgeon, saying he would "much rather quit when I'm at the top of my game". WASHINGTON Dr. Ben Carson on Sunday continued to blast those scrutinizing his past, refusing to offer up the one person who might help corroborate stories from his youth his older brother,. Another separation resulted in the death of one twin and the survival of the other, who is legally blind and struggles to walk. In the 2014 cycle, Williams made $95,700, according to records. [116], In July 2013, Carson was hired by The Washington Times as a weekly opinion columnist. [13] He suspended his campaign on March4 and announced he would be the new national chairman of My Faith Votes, a group that encourages Christians to exercise their civic duty to vote. Even if they were evil. [109] In a 2004 speech, he credited the company's products with the disappearance of his prostate cancer symptoms. Barack Obama, who was in attendance, and the resulting media attention helped make Carson a rising star in conservative circles. Benjamin and Patrick Binder were born connected at the head and separated at age 7 months after a 22-hour surgery on Sept. 6, 1987, by Ben Carson and a team of doctors, the Associated Press. [18] He was the subject of the 2009 TV film Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story, wherein he was portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr. Carson has also written or co-written six bestselling books. [234][241], In 1998, Carson was invited to give the commencement address at the prominent Andrews University, the flagship institution of the Seventh Day Adventist school system. In 1987, Dr. Ben Carson travels to Ulm, Germany to meet a couple, Peter and Augusta Rausch, who have twins conjoined at the back of their heads. I didn't have any involvement with Mannatech. He later also held professorships in plastic surgery, oncology, and pediatrics at Johns Hopkins. The story of Joseph is usually dated as set in the time of Egypt's, United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, Department of Housing and Urban Development, United States House Committee on Appropriations, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Learn how and when to remove this template message, William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership, Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, 2016 Republican Party presidential candidates, Ben Carson officially changes political parties, rejoins GOP, "Everything you need to know about HUD Secretary Ben Carson", "Pioneer surgeon Ben Carson will speak at Birmingham-Southern tonight", "With Ben Carson, the Doctor and the Politician Can Vary Sharply", "Separation of craniopagus Siamese twins using cardiopulmonary bypass and hypothermic circulatory arrest", "Acclaimed physician Benjamin Carson to give Neurosurgery lecture April 11", "Neurologists & Neurosurgeons at Johns Hopkins Profile: Dr. Benjamin Carson", "Online poll: Carson slips, leaving Trump on top", "Ben Carson tells supporters he sees no 'path forward' for presidential campaign", "What explains Ben Carson? A pioneer in the field of neurosurgery, he was a candidate for President of the United States in the 2016 Republican primaries. Ben Carson's operation to separate twins joined at the head was the first successful one . Carson was said by aide Armstrong Williams in a May 10 interview to have withdrawn from the Trump campaign's vetting team, though the campaign confirmed he was still involved. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. "[145], In October 2015, the Super PAC supporting Carson, The 2016 Committee (formerly the Draft Carson Committee), announced it had received donations in mostly $100 increments from more than 200 small businesses around the country over the course of one week. He polled 10% to Mitt Romney's 20%, but in the same poll with Romney removed from the list, Carson polled 11% to Jeb Bush's 14%. The first book was an autobiography published in 1992. Biography and Interview", "Ben Carson for President: What You Need to Know", "Neurologists & Neurosurgeons at Johns Hopkins he also worked at K.H.M.H in Belize in 2009 where he did twelve operations. [22] Carson's older brother, Curtis, was born in 1949, when his mother was 20. Ben Carson and his brother were raised in inner-city Detroit, with their odds of becoming successful almost non-existent, yet Ben eventually became the head of the pediatric neurosurgery unit at Johns Hopkins, largely due to his mother's influence. [149] The Wall Street Journal said the narrative came under "the harsh scrutiny of presidential politics, where rivals and media hunt for embellishments and omissions that can hobble a campaign". [13][158], In total, Ben Carson's campaign spent $58 million. He received numerous awards during his career, including the 2008 Presidential Medal of Freedom, given to him by U.S. Pres. [245][246] Speaking in 1990, he said that with the increasing availability of meat substitutes, "It might take 20 years. Both Carson and his brother experienced difficulty in . We are seeing everything from doctors' offices and folks in the healthcare profession to motorcycle repair shops and bed and breakfasts. This is fully in line with Adventist teaching, which promotes annihilationism. Regarding the Ukrainian crisis, Carson would send arms to Ukraine to aid it in its fight against pro-Russian rebels. As a result, he states he "never had another problem with temper". [93] Although there were few follow-up stories following the Binder twins' return to Germany seven months after the operation,[93] both twins were reportedly "far from normal" two years after the procedure, with one in a vegetative state. Carson questioned whether his campaign was economically sabotaged from within. Fox Business reported that "Carson's outsider status is growing his small business support base." [17] In 2010, he was elected into the National Academy of Medicine. The long tradition of black conservatism", "5 Things You Should Know About Ben Carson", "Carson, Hopkins Colleagues Named to Institute of Medicine | Children's Hospital at Johns Hopkins | Baltimore, Maryland", "Sonya Carson, Ben Carson's Mother, Passes at 88", "Carson's positions on poverty create tension with rags-to-riches life story", "Ben Carson did not grow up living in public housing", "The Detroit childhood that shaped Ben Carson", "For Ben Carson, bleak memories of his time in Boston. [123] Carson had previously served on Vaccinogen's Medical Advisory Board. [174] Trump received the Republican nomination[174] and went on to be elected president on November 8, 2016. A HUD spokesman said that no one present thought Carson "was equating voluntary immigration with involuntary servitude". He has served as a local elder and Sabbath School teacher in the Seventh-day Adventist Church and is a member of Spencerville Seventh-day Adventist Church. What happened to Ben Carson's older brother Curtis? After failing to win any states a month into the primary election season, Carson formally suspended his campaign in early March 2016. He was one of the youngest doctors in the United States to earn such a title. College Bowl television show. Yes. In a February 2019 interview Carson suggested that he would leave HUD at the end of Trumps term in 2021. [70][71] In 1973, Carson graduated with a B.A. [19] Robert Carson was a Baptist minister, but he later became a Cadillac automobile plant laborer. [106][107] The nature of this relationship became an issue in 2015 during Carson's presidential campaign. In an effort to promote self-sufficiency, Carson supported rent increases for those receiving federal housing assistance or living in public housing properties. Later, she returned to Detroit and worked as many as three jobs at a time to support herself and her boys. A Carson spokesperson later said Carson expected Trump to select a Republican. In mid-2013 he retired as a surgeon, and the following year he joined the Fox News Channel as a commentator. Being born on 18 September 1951, Ben Carson is 71 years old as of today's date 2nd March 2023. Among them are claims of him hitting his friend with a pad-lock over the head, stubbing his friend in the stomach with a knife and trying to hit his mother over the head with a hammer and his brother stopping him. Headed by world-renowned neurosurgeon, presidential candidate, and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson, ACI will be a voice for reason and civility in a nation that is increasingly devoid of common sense. He was a vocal supporter of eventual winner Donald Trump, who in December 2016 announced that he would nominate Carson to serve as secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Wall Street Journal confirmed the riot but could not find anyone who remembered Carson sheltering white students. He warned that "big, hairy men" might infiltrate homeless shelters for women, prompting one woman to walk out. "[113], During the CNBC GOP debate on October 28, 2015, Carson was asked about his relationship with Mannatech. [7][8][5][9] He wrote over 100 neurosurgical publications. [214], Recipients of the Carson Scholars Fund receive a $1,000 scholarship towards their college education. "[157], On March 2, following the Super Tuesday 2016 primaries, Carson announced that he did "not see a political path forward" and would not attend the next Republican debate in Detroit. Ben Carson Net Worth. [134] In the presidential straw poll at the 2013 Values Voter Summit, he and Rick Santorum polled 13%, with winner Ted Cruz polling 42%, and in 2014 he polled 20% to Cruz's winning 25%. It is soon later that he meets Lacena Rustin (Candy). On the other hand, at the press conference Carson said Trump had a "cerebral" side. [51], Carson has said that he protected white students in a biology lab after a race riot broke out at his high school in response to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Both his parents came from large families in rural Georgia, and they were living in rural Tennessee when they met and married. What? Politico reported that West Point has no record of his ever seeking admission. [224][225], After being diagnosed with prostate cancer, Carson underwent a two-hour operation at the Johns Hopkins Hospital on August 7, 2002. [246] In August 2015, Carson claimed he does "occasionally enjoy a nice steak or a hamburger" at a town hall meeting in Iowa. Party: Republican. [207] On March 20, 2018, Carson testified before the United States House Committee on Appropriations that he had "dismissed" himself from the decision to buy the $31,000 dining room set and "left it to my wife, you know, to choose something". [93] Two sets of twins died, including Iranian twins Ladan and Laleh Bijani. He does say that his older brother, then a student at the University of Michigan, received a low number (26) in the first draft lottery in 1969 and was able to enlist in the Navy for four years instead of being drafted,[74] whereas he received a high number (333) in the second draft lottery in 1970. Carson also traveled as a motivational speaker, was an outspoken supporter of creationism, and was the subject of the 2009 made-for-television movie Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story. [100], In 2021, Carson joined Galectin Therapeutics to assist with development of the company's galectin-3 inhibitor, belapectin, as a treatment for NASH cirrhosis and in combination with immunotherapy for the treatment of cancers. [162] Carson's subsequent comments that Americans would have to sustain Trump for only four years if he was not a good president drew criticism, and he admitted that he would have preferred another candidate, though he thought Trump had the best chance of winning the general election. . When their father left, they moved to Boston to live with Sonya's sister, and then moved back to Detroit. Sonya moved her sons to Boston where she lived with her sister for a short time. [14], On January 24, 2017, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs voted unanimously to approve the nomination. "[82], Carson entered the University of Michigan Medical School in 1973, and at first he struggled academically, doing so poorly on his first set of comprehensive exams that his faculty adviser recommended he drop out of medical school or take a reduced academic load and take longer to finish.