# Howard, Dorsey, Still Lecture The Howard, Dorsey, Still Lecture was created in 2008 to honor three trailblazing African American physicians—Dr. Edwin Howard, Dr. Thomas Dorsey, and Dr. James Still—who advanced healthcare equity despite systemic barriers, becoming the first African Americans to graduate from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Howard (HMS 1869) co-founded the Frederick Douglass Memorial Hospital and later established Mercy Hospital to provide Black physicians and nurses with vital training opportunities. Dr. Dorsey (HMS 1869), the first African American to earn an MD from Harvard, was likely a witness to the founding of Howard University and its College of Medicine, and the Freedman’s Hospital in post-Reconstruction Washington, D.C. Dr. Still (HMS 1871) practiced in Boston, advocating for healthcare and educational equity as the first African American elected to the Boston School Board. He was also the nephew of William Still, a leader of the Underground Railroad, whose activism influenced his work. This Lecture continues their legacy and recognizes continued advances in the nation’s health. ### Past Howard Dorsey Still Speakers SortYearSpeaker2025 No speaker due to sudden illness. 2024 **Nawal Nour, MD, MPH, MBA** HMS Kate Macy Ladd Professor, Chair, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Founding Director, African Women’s Health Center 2023 **Shirley Marks, MD, MPH, DLFAPA** Psychiatrist and former Regional Director Behavioral Health Services, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Correctional Managed Care 2022 **Andre L. Churchwell, MD** Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity & Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer; The Levi Watkins, Jr., MD Chair for Achievements in Diversity and Inclusion, Vanderbilt University Professor of Medicine (Cardiology), Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, and Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine 2021 **Sherri Ann Charleston, PhD, JD** Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Harvard University 2020 No Lecture. **Diversity Awards Ceremony only.** 2019 **Otis Brawley, MD, MACP, FASCO, FACE** Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Oncology and Epidemiology 2018 **Deborah Prothrow-Stith, MD** Dean and Professor of Medicine; Office of the Dean, College of Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science 2017 **John F. (Jack) Dovidio, PhD** Carl Iver Hovland Professor of Psychology, and the Dean of Academic Affairs of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Yale University 2016 **Hannah Valantine, MD** Chief Officer for Scientific Workforce Diversity, National Institutes of Health 2015 **Craig Steven Wilder, PhD** Professor of History and Head of the History Faculty, Department of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2014 **Pedro (Joe) Greer, Jr., MD** Professor of Medicine, Associate Dean for Community Engagement and Founding Chair of the Department of Humanities, Health and Society at Florida International University, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine 2013 **Susan R. Windham-Bannister, PhD** President and Chief Executive Officer, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center