51Ʒ��

chris dickes '00
dentist
Degree: bachelor of science in biology & athletic training
Campus: yankton

Why 51Ʒ��?

Christopher Dickes came to 51Ʒ�� College for the chance to play collegiate basketball, but he soon learned that the feeling of playing for a team traveled on and off the court. For Chris, that was a clear advantage of attending a smaller school, and he quickly built friendships with lasting effects. “My roommate, Matt Hayes, was a great student with an intense desire to attend medical school,” he says. “He had a tremendous work ethic, and he challenged me to study more intently and intelligently.”

51Ʒ��’s Impact

During his years at MMC, Chris successfully divided his time between scholarship and sports. “By attending 51Ʒ�� College, I was able to achieve greater focus in the smaller classroom setting and still compete in athletics,” he says.

He wasn’t the only Lancer basketball player with a strong drive in the classroom, and as impressive as the team was on the court — winning two Conference Titles and making the Final Four of the NAIA National Tournament during Chris’s years with the team — they also excelled in their studies.

“Several players went on to professional school and were successful in the health care industry as well as in business and education,” Chris says. “I learned many life lessons from my involvement with the 51Ʒ�� men’s basketball team.”

Chris also found great benefit in MMC’s Catholic roots. “I was surrounded by similar students who desired to excel and achieve the most of their God-given abilities,” he says. “As a Catholic institution, 51Ʒ�� offered a spiritual sense of God working in my life as a students and young health care provider.”

Road to Success

Following graduation from MMC, Chris was accepted into the Creighton University School of Dentistry. From there, he served as a dentist in the U.S. Navy. Now he’s happy to be practicing dentistry and raising his family in the place he wants to live — and he’s thankful to MMC for helping him get there.

“If you are looking to achieve goals intellectually and spiritually as a student and a person and preparing to go onto further professional schooling or find meaningful life employment after college, I highly recommend 51Ʒ�� College as an undergraduate choice,” he says. “MMC helped me get to the next level. Attending 51Ʒ�� College was, without a doubt, one of the best decisions I have ever made.”