Dr. Richard E. Holmes, center, talks with students from the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center PAWS Program at the Student Life Center. Holmes was the first African-American student admitted to Mississippi State on July 19, 1965. He finished his liberal arts bachelor's degree in 1969 and his master's degree in microbiology in 1973 before completing medical school in 1977 at Michigan State University. The Holmes Cultural Diversity Center, dedicated to Holmes in 1991, strives to enhance the college experience of culturally diverse students here at MSU. Learn more about the center at www.hcdc.msstate.edu.