Medical student recognition banquet to be held Jan. 19

Graduating minority medical students at East Carolina University will be recognized Saturday, Jan. 19, at the 24th annual Dr. Andrew A. Best Senior Recognition Banquet.

The event begins at 7 p.m. at the Greenville Hilton. It is sponsored by the Student National Medical Association at the Brody School of Medicine at ECU. Dr. Julius Q. Mallette, assistant vice chancellor for regional health services outreach at ECU, will speak.

Best was Greenvilles’ first black physician. He died in 2005. The banquet was renamed for him this year.

The National Medical Association is the only national organization devoted to the needs of African-American physicians and health professionals. The SNMA was founded as a subdivision of the NMA. The ECU chapter holds the ACE Bowl-A-Thon to raise money to help low-income people with diabetes purchase diabetes supplies, sponsors the Best Scholarship and works to raise awareness of health professions among minority high school students.

Banquet tickets are $30 for the general public and $15 for students and may be purchased by calling the Academic Support and Enrichment Center at the Brody School of Medicine at (252) 744-2500 or by e-mailing Akilah Crawford at asc0627@ecu.edu.