 He received his Ph.D. in biology (biochemistry) from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD, where he trained with Dr. Stephen A. Roth, and was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Washington University in St. Louis, where he trained with Dr. Stuart A. Kornfeld.Cummings also holds an honorary Master of Science degree from Harvard University and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Montevallo (2019).He also received the 2019 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Montevallo.