Cleckley graduated from the Academy of Richmond County high school in 1921, then graduated in 1924 summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens, where he was a member of the varsity football and track and field teams [REF].
Cleckley then earned his M.D. from the University of Georgia Medical School (now known as the Medical College of Georgia) in Augusta in 1929.