Heritage Academy graduate Dr. Dallas Sorrell will present this year’s Hazard Lecture at the school Sept. 23. The 33rd annual program, free to the public, will be at 7 p.m. in the Heritage Elementary auditorium at 623 Willowbrook Road.

A 1992 alumna, Dr. Sorrel will speak on “The Future of Radiology.” She is a board-certified diagnostic radiologist with the Radiological Group in Jackson.

Heritage opened in 1964, and every five years, graduates return to offer lecture programs, said Lynne Sneed, principal of the upper school.

“These alumni speakers consistently inspire our students and inform our community. With her outstanding career that showcases the achievements of another Heritage alumna, Dr. Sorrell will continue this tradition while enriching the knowledge of our audience. We are proud to have her back on campus,” Sneed said.

Dr. Sorrel is a 2000 magna cum laude graduate of Mississippi School of Medicine. Her subspecialty is cardiothoracic imaging.

“Heritage provided the foundation that sustained me throughout my postgraduate education and professional career. The school’s academic background gave me the confidence to follow my passion,” she said. “I was surrounded with a community of friends, mentors and supporters from my elementary years through high school.”

She recalled Janice Anderson, Marlies Elmore and Billy Caldwell as “exceptional teachers of advanced math and science who provided an excellent foundation for my college and professional education.”

And remembering Heritage choir director Sally Wooten, she praised the school’s “opportunities to try things that were not my strong suit and still enjoy the process.”

“Heritage has always had a well-rounded perspective on student growth that I greatly appreciate and that I try to instill in my children,” she said.

This year’s speaker graduated from Mississippi State University with a major in microbiology. After medical school in Jackson, she completed her radiology residency and fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute at Washington University in St. Louis. She has practiced in Jackson since 2008 and lives in Madison with her family.

George Hazard Jr. and his sisters, Eulalie Davis and the late Florence Winton, started the lecture series in 1992 in honor of their father, the late George S. Hazard.

“We are glad to be part of Heritage’s 60th year,” Hazard said. “Dallas is an example of building a fine career on a high school foundation. Her look at the future of her specialty helps support the school’s community mission, and we hope it will be informative, even inspiring, for the students who are the future of our state and city.”

The annual lecture series rotates between three themes: The Voyage of the Mind, The Voyage of the Artist and The Voyage from the Past.