Endowment & Scholarship Funds

School-wide Scholarships (available to all students)

 

The Edith and Emanuel Cohen / Evelyn A Gerstein Memorial Scholarship

Established in the honor of the parents and aunt of Ms. Phyllis Jendrusch, a member of the SHP Faculty, The Edith and Emanuel Cohen / Evelyn A Gerstein Memorial Scholarship is awarded to incoming students with a high potential for leadership and service.

Adolph J. Rodriguez, Jr., "A.J." to all who knew him, exemplified all that   can be accomplished in a community by a single energetic individual who  has dedicated his life to love and service.  During his short but successful  career, the City of Galveston benefited greatly from his many endeavors.  He was president of the Galveston Heart Association, president of the  Galveston Noon Kiwanis Club, secretary of the Galveston Boys Club, and a  member of the Galveston Board of Directors of the United Way.  He played a  major role in the establishment of the Emergency Medical Services program  in the City of Galveston, was the director of the CETA program in the  community, and was Federal Grants Coordinator for Galveston County.  Mr.  Rodriguez was a moving force behind the summer recreation program for  disadvantaged youth, and he served on the External Advisory Council for  the School of Health Professions.

A.J. was the recipient of several awards including the Kiwanian of the Year,  the Boys Club Medallion, and the Galveston Jaycees Distinguished Citizen  Award.  In addition to his tireless community service, A.J. was a devoted  father, husband, and friend.

A.J. Rodriguez was a man of character and spirit.  His faith and belief in his fellow man, the optimism and dedication with which he met life, and his tireless efforts on behalf of those less fortunate than himself form the foundation of the memorials to his life. Endowment currently stands at $37,895.94 with a $50,000 goal.

The D. Lisa Sunshine Leonard Scholarship was created in 1990 to honor the  late Dr. Lisa Leonard, Associate Dean for Curricular Affairs.  Dr. Leonard was a biochemist, a talented teacher and an able administrator.  She first joined the UTMB School of Health Professions as a teaching consultant in 1975.  In 1976 she became a full time member of the faculty, developing and teaching courses in Human Anatomy, Human Physiology and Neuroscience.  Before becoming Associate Dean for Curricular Affairs, in 1981, she headed the Department of Humanities and Basic Sciences.

Dr. Leonard was an active member of the American Society of Allied Health  Professions and held many national and regional offices and committee  posts.  Her research activities included numerous papers and presentations  in the areas of curriculum development and evaluation, and gerontology. She was honored several times by the School of Health Professions,  receiving awards as Outstanding Teacher and Outstanding Administrator.

Eugene (Gene) Kindley, Ph.D. was an educator who taught anatomy and neuroscience at UTMB's School of Health Professions from September 1995 until his death in February 1997.

In his short two-and-one-half years at the School of Health Professions, Associate Professor Eugene Kindley won the respect of administrators and faculty for as a colleague and later as director of the Humanities and Basic Sciences Division. He communicated to students his genuine concern for their development as scholars and as people, and they responded to his interest. His untimely death was a great loss to our school and to allied health education.

The SHP established the Dr. Gene Kindley Scholarship Endowment to honor Kindley's memory in perpetuity. Income from the endowment is awarded to an eligible student in any of the school's programs after completion of the basic science portion of the curriculum. Other criteria which may be considered in awarding the scholarship are: overall grade point average in basic science courses; leadership in student government and professional organizations; community service, disadvantaged background, financial need, and commitment to ethical, compassionate, team-oriented health care. The endowment currently stands at $36,200.12 with a $50,000 goal.

Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences

Department of Occupational Therapy

 

In 1966, Robert K. Bing agreed to reorganize the Department of Occupational Therapy in the hospitals of the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. Here he established the first school of allied health in the Southwest. In 1968,he was named dean of the School of Health Professions, the first occupational therapist to receive such an appointment.

Dr. Bing has contributed to education, research, administration, recruitment, and public relations for occupational therapy. In 1981, the AOTA awarded him its highest honor, the Eleanor Clarke Slagle Lectureship. While holder of the lectureship, Dr. Bing wrote "Occupational Therapy Revisited," a thorough, thoughtful, and inspiring history of occupational therapy, from its philosophical origins in seventeenth-century England forward.

As professor emeritus, Dr. Bing maintains active involvement with the School of Health Professions, where he is a frequent lecturer for the Department of Occupational Therapy and a mentor to faculty members and students alike.

Medical professionals today recognize, more than ever before, the "inextricability of mind and body" of which Dr. Bing speaks (quoted on front cover). And they acknowledge the critical importance of occupational therapy in restoring function and improving quality of life for people with physical and emotional disabilities. In this emerging health care environment, occupational therapists have the opportunity to create new collaborative roles and add to the rich history of the profession. The opportunity demands imagination and commitment, and the Robert K. Bing Scholars Program is designed to foster development of just such professional attitudes.

Robert K. Bing Occupational Therapy Scholars will be students who demonstrate scholarship and potential for leadership in the profession. The dollar amount of the award will be sufficient to cover the cost of tuition, books, and laboratory fees. The prestigious award will encourage students to perform at their best. It will recognize and reward those who take seriously the profession's challenge to make contributions that extend beyond satisfaction of requirements.

Income from the Robert K. Bing Occupational Therapy Scholars Program endowment will:

• pay tribute to a nationally acclaimed occupational therapist and educator, founder, and first dean of the School of Allied Health Sciences at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

• promote and reward scholarship in occupational therapy among students who demonstrate potential for leader-ship in the field.

• attract, by virtue of the award's prestige and substance, dedicated students who will strengthen the occupational therapy program and the School of Health Professions.

• encourage students to emulate Dr. Bing's high standards of scholarship, integrity, competence, and compassion.

Competitive Scholarship in Occupational Therapy

Department of Physical Therapy

This award is given to a MPT student in their final year of education in the Department of Physical Therapy who has demonstrated academic excellence by maintaining a Grade Point Average of not less than 3.3 during professional studies;  who had demonstrated potential for clinical excellence in the laboratory and clinic; and who has been certified by the Office of Financial Aid as in need of monetary assistance in order to complete his or her education.

Linda Lange Williams was born January 15, 1950 in Beaumont, Texas.  She attended public schools in Vidor, Texas and later attended Lamar University.  She was accepted into the Physical Therapy Program at the School of Allied Health Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch in 1970 and graduated in 1971.

Linda's education was funded by scholarships such as the Neil Armstrong Easter Seal Scholarship, and she never forgot the financial help provided by others that enabled her to reach her goal of becoming a physical therapist.  Following graduation, Linda accepted a position as staff therapist at Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas in Beaumont.  She was later promoted to the position of Assistant Director and was Acting Director of Physical Therapy at the time of her death.  Linda died on April 19, 1986 at the age of thirty-six in a tragic fire that also claimed the lives of her husband, Bruce, and her son, Michael.

The Sabine District of the Texas Physical Therapy Association aided by donation from family and friends, established the Linda Lange Williams Memorial Scholarship in 1987 to honor and perpetuate her memory by aiding a student with financial needs to complete their education even as Linda herself was aided.

Although she retired from UTMB in 1963, she continued her involvement in the physical therapy profession, assuming positions at the American Physical Therapy Association headquarters in Washington DC and as a visiting professor at Duke University.  In 1967 she accepted a one year appointment to start a school of physiotherapy in West Pakistan.  After the founding of the UTMB School of Health Professions in 1968, Ms. Decker provided consultation and occasional teaching as a part-time faculty member, and served as an active member of the alumni association.

During her distinguished career, Ms. Decker received numerous awards and recognition, including the prestigious McMillan lectureship from the American Physical Therapy Association.  She held many positions in the Texas Physical Therapy Association, and an anonymous donor created an award in her name. The Ruby Decker award is considered the highest award offered by the Texas Physical Therapy Association.

This endowment was created to honor Ruby Decker and her outstanding lifetime contributions to physical therapy, physical therapists and humanity. Funds from this endowed position will be used to support in whole or in part, a full time academic Professorship in the UTMB-SHP Department of Physical Therapy. Selection of an occupant shall include criteria of teaching, patient care and research skills. The endowment currently stands at $154,320.84 in hopes to raise enough money to lend Decker's name to a distinguished professorship, requiring the endowment of $250,000.

This endowment was created by Mr. and Mrs. Peyton Schapper, Jr., grateful patients of the Physical Therapy Department at UTMB. Funds distributed from the endowment are awarded for two purposes:

First it is to be used as scholarships for physical therapy students in good academic standing who show interest and promise in pursing the study of spine rehabilitation.

And secondly, this endowment will be used to support research by a physical therapy student or physical therapist whose investigation is designed to improve the rehabilitation of patients with spinal impairment.

Department of Physician Assistant Studies

"Dr. Allensworth came to love problem-based, small-group learning," says Dr. Rahr. "It is a Socratic kind of learning. He would make students do a physical exam, to see that they knew how to do it. Then, they would sit down in a small group and talk about the patient's problem until they got to resolution."

Dr. Daniel C. Allensworth served as medical director of the Department of Physician Assistant Studies at the UTMB School of Health Professions from 1974 until his retirement from the university in 1993. He also was an Associate Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, and widely recognized by his profession as a leader in cardiology. Dr. Allensworth is a strong advocate of the physician assistant profession, and a very special friend to the department's many faculty, students, staff, and alumni.

Once totally funded, the endowment will provide scholarships supporting PA students through their 26-month training program at UTMB. The endowment currently stands at $46,159.87 with a goal of $100,000.

Department of Respiratory Care

Funds distributed from the endowment shall be used to provide scholarships to full-time Respiratory Care students at the UTMB SHP who are in good academic standing and exhibit outstanding leadership and service characteristics.