Bursting with excitement, about 135 seventh- and eighth-graders gathered in a conference room at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and listened intently to a speech that could end up shaping their young lives.

The speaker giving the opening remarks at the annual Brain- works program was world-renowned neurosurgeon, researcher and thought-leader in the field of medicine, Keith L. Black, M.D.

Called the Michael Jordan of neurosurgeons by Ebony Magazine and one of the “Heroes of Medicine” by Time Magazine, Black has devoted himself to paving the way for the next generation of neurosurgeons during his 30-year career.

Hoping that tomorrow’s physicians will continue his work to find a cure for brain cancer, Black started the Brainworks program in 1998 to inspire young, promising students to pursue opportunities in neuroscience by having them spend a day with neurologists, neurosurgeons and scientists.

“We can look around the medical profession and still not see many in leadership positions at hospitals or medical schools who look like me,” Black said. “I made a choice early on to do my part to build up the much-needed pipeline in the profession by capturing and engaging the minds of young people from diverse but financially challenged communities.”

Black offers the Brainworks students the same kind of nurturing that helped him develop his talent. He exposes them to a world of possibilities — from doing a simulated brain operation on a phantom skull using an $800,000 microscope, to learning how to operate a cutting-edge, 3-D navigation system that helps neuro- surgeons see inside the brain.

As he spoke to the students on a recent day, Black explained how he was inspired while growing up in Ohio.“I got a chance to actually go to one of the hospitals in Cleveland and listen to a brain surgeon talk.”

Born in Tuskegee, AL, Black credits his parents — both educators — for helping him to cultivate his passion for learning and research.“My love of science was nurtured early by my father, Robert N. Black Sr., who I

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