But thanks to a progressive partnership between Millsaps and the University of Mississippi Medical Center that existed in the 1970s, the Belzoni native surmounted the odds and graduated from medical school. Not only did Greene become a doctor, but he rose to the top of his profession as a faculty member at the world-renowned Mayo Medical School and Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

Greene ('78), a nephrologist who graduated from the University of Minnesota Medical School in 1982, was among 35 Millsaps alumni who celebrated the 25th year of the Millsaps/UMC Pre-Medical Training Co-Operative at a reunion held last month on the Millsaps campus.

Through the PMTC program, funded by a Department of Health, Education and Welfare initiative to increase minority enrollment in medical schools across the nation, 15 top students from disadvantaged areas of the state were selected each year to earn a Millsaps pre-med degree. Federal funds were used to create 35 additional spots for those students at UMC, although participants were free to attend other graduate schools.

A landmark experiment, the intensive three-year curriculum at Millsaps was designed to instill in students the qualities they would need to succeed in medical school, fostering a sense of group support, training them in test-taking skills and helping them focus on academic areas where they most needed improvement.

"It gave us not only peer support but we also had support from Millsaps and those professors who were dedicated to proving that disadvantaged students from Mississippi, given the right tools, could develop into highly qualified students and professionals," Greene said. "It gave me a solid education both in liberal arts and the sciences, which prepared me not only for medical school but also for life beyond."

The reunion, which featured Mississippi Supreme Court Justice James E. Graves Jr. as the keynote speaker, was "an opportunity to reconnect with those who were around us when we were trying to make our vision become a reality," said the coordinator, Dr. Renita Cotton-Johnson ('78). Complementing the inspirational spirit of the event was a performance at the banquet by the Millsaps Gospel Choir.

Cotton-Johnson said the reunion was also held to "honor the vision'' of those who initiated and implemented the PMTC program. To show their gratitude, the PMTC alumni have contributed money toward an endowed scholarship for pre-med students at Millsaps, to be named for Dr. C. Eugene "Gene" Cain, a Millsaps chemistry professor for 42 years and an adviser, mentor and friend to many of the PMTC students.

Alumni say that Cain was more than a good teacher; he was a guide who helped them navigate challenging curricula and challenging lives as minority pre-med students in the 1970s. "I have very fond memories of Dr. Cain," said Perry Wallace ('79), a Meridian internist. "He was not only a teacher but a father figure and an adviser. He helped us integrate into the Millsaps community and college life in general."

Cain so believed in the program that he went to Washington to argue for its extension. "Millsaps and the prestigious medical center across the street created a vehicle for students from almost anywhere in Mississippi to become physicians," Cain said. "It opened a door. Millsaps gained minority students, boosted enrollment and kept bright students in Mississippi – many of whom had full scholarships to Ivy League schools across the country.''

Tommy Rose, DDS ('78), praised the initiative for "making a difference in the ratio of minority physicians, dentists and lawyers available to the community at large."

"It was the finest opportunity of its kind in the country," he said.

"These were uncharted waters at the time," said Dr. Johnnie Cummings ('78), a Clarksdale internist who graduated from Meharry Medical College in Nashville in 1986. "When the program began, we were just bright young minds who were brought into this program not knowing where it was going to take us. Millsaps gave us a sense of what could be done. Now we come together after 25 years, with what we have learned and experienced, to see for ourselves what is and what can be. Now it is our responsibility to complete the cycle."

Click here for additional photos from the PMTC reunion!