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AMA leader to speak at MUSC Commencement Randolph D. Smoak Jr., M.D., an MUSC alumnus and president-elect of the American Medical Association (AMA), will  address the graduating class of 2000 at the university's 171st Commencement May 19. Named president-elect of AMA in June 1999, Smoak will become the first South Carolinian to serve as president of the national organization when he takes office this summer. Born in Bamberg, Smoak received his B.S. degree from the University of South Carolina and his M.D. degree from MUSC. He served his internship at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta, and completed his residency training at MUSC. Smoak completed a senior surgical oncology fellowship at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He then returned to his home state to establish a surgery practice. Prior to becoming president-elect, Smoak served as the AMA’s board chair from 1998 to 1999, vice chair from 1997 to 1998 and secretary-treasurer from 1995 to 1997. He has been a member of the AMA Board of Trustees since 1992. Smoak currently chairs the American Medical Accreditation Program Governing Body, and as lead spokesman for AMA’s anti-smoking campaign, he represents the AMA on the Department of Health and Human Services Interagency Committee on Smoking and Health. He served as an AMA commissioner to the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) from 1996 to 1999 and as AMA’s representative to the National Health Council since 1994. Smoak is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a diplomat of the American Board of Surgery. He is a clinical professor of surgery at MUSC and a clinical associate professor of surgery at the USC School of Medicine. He is the past chair of the Department of Surgery, chief of staff and trustee at the Orangeburg Regional Medical Center.