Shelby R. Wilkes, M.D

Vice-Speaker of the NMA House of Delegates and Formerly Treasurer- Natonal Medical Associaton, Inc.

Dr. Wilkes graduated from Alcorn State University in three years, summa cum laude with a B.S. degree in Biology.

During his tenure at Alcorn State University, he was a member of the Honors Colloquium, and he was inducted into The Alpha Kappa Mu Honors Society. In additon, he was vice-president of the Student Government Associaton, and a member of Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universites at Alcorn and at Kennesaw State University. Wilkes is a life member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. as well as a life member of the NAACP. In additon, he is an alumnus of Leadership Atlanta in the Class of 1994, and he was the co-director of the Leadership Atlanta Graduatng Class of 1997.

He received his Doctor of Medicine degree from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and he completed his Internship in Surgery at the University of Rochester, School of Medicine, Department of Surgery, Rochester, New York. Dr. Wilkes performed his Residency in Ophthalmology in the Department of Ophthalmology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. At the end of his residency, he was awarded the Mayo Clinic Ophthalmic Alumni Award for excellence in research. Moreover, he is a former member of the board of directors of the Mayo Clinic Eye Alumni Associaton.

His vitreoretnal fellowship in surgery and diseases of the Retna and Vitreous was completed in the Departments of Ophthalmology, at Harvard Medical School and Harvard University, on the Retna Service of the Massachuse􏰁s Eye and Ear Infirmary, in Boston, Massachuse􏰁s. In additon, and significantly, Dr. Wilkes joined the Staff of the Mass. Eye and Ear Infirmary in 1983.

He is board certfied by the American Board of Ophthalmology, and he is a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. In additon, he is a member of the American Society of Retna Specialists.

Dr. Wilkes is an official co-author of the Book: “ALL Day, ALL Night,” A history of the Atlanta Medical Associaton, Inc. from 1890 to 2012.

In 1998, Dr. Wilkes received his MBA from the Michael J. Coles College of Business at Kennesaw State University, in Kennesaw, Georgia.

At Coles College of Business, he was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma Society (internatonal honors society in business); and, In 2018 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame at the Coles College of Business. Moreover, he is a member of Phi Kappa Phi and he is listed in Marquis Who’s Who in Finance and Industry.

Dr. Wilkes has served as a distnguished alumnus of the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Associaton Council (as a member of the Nominatons And Awards committee, and formerly as the liaison to The Johns University School of Medicine for the JHUAA Council). He is a former vice-chairman of the Board of Directors of Capitol City Bank in Atlanta; currentmemberoftheDean’s AdvisoryCouncil-EmoryUniversity, Rollins School of Public Health. He is former chair of the Board of the Directors: Morris Brown College Foundaton, Inc., former chair of the Board of Directors of the West End Medical Centers, Atlanta, Georgia; and a deacon of Zion Hill Baptst Church and Chair of the Zion Hill Baptst Church Health Ministry.

Dr. Wilkes has written, presented, and published numerous peer-reviewed artcles for journals of ophthalmology. Currently, he is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of the Natonal Medical Associaton. In 2023, Doximity listed Dr. Wilkes’ publicatons of 3 of his artcles as puttng the citatons of these works in the top 20 % of cited publicatons.

On September 15, 2023, was recognized and chosen as “The Distnguished Alumni of the year for 2023 at Kennesaw State University”, an insttuton with over 42,000 students, in Kennesaw, Georgia.

Finally, Dr. Wilkes is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology and Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery, in the Departments of Ophthalmology and Surgery, at Emory University School of Medicine and Morehouse School of Medicine, respectvely, in Atlanta, Georgia.