FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, Aug. 28, 2014
Contact: Leah C. Payne, Director of Public Affairs, Schools of Medicine and Pharmacy, 304-691-1713

School of Medicine announces creation of six new scholarships 

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Six new scholarships have been established at the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine to assist medical students with their educational expenses.  

The following scholarships were created through the school’s “Adopt a Medical Student” program, which is a graduated giving program that allows gifts to be made annually until the fund becomes fully endowed. 

• The Becker Family Scholarship was created by Dr. James “Jim” B. Becker, Class of 1993 and senior associate dean for clinical affairs at the school of medicine, and will be awarded to a rising fourth-year medical student who is planning to pursue a career in family medicine. The $1,000 award will be given to three medical students annually.

• The Elizabeth Scholarship will be awarded to an entering medical student from West Virginia, and was created by Dr. Cindy Z. Pinson, Class of 1996. This scholarship is in memory of Liz Pinson and Beth Bondurant, two women who bravely fought cancer. The award is renewable for three additional years pending normal academic progress.

• The Evans Family Scholarship was created by Dr. Joseph “Joe” E. Evans, Class of 1982 and chairman of the school’s department of pediatrics, and will be awarded to an entering medical student with first preference to a graduate of Spring Valley High School in Wayne County, W.Va. This award is renewable for three additional years pending normal academic progress.

• The Dr. and Mrs. Scott E. Miller Family Scholarship will be awarded to a first-year medical student who is a West Virginia resident and has financial need as per Office of Student Financial Assistance standards.Dr. Miller, Class of 1986, who is a cardiologist in Charleston, created the scholarship in honor of Cynthia A. “Cindy” Warren, director of admissions for the School of Medicine. The award is renewable for three additional years pending normal academic progress. 

• The Dr. Thomas B. Styer Scholarship was endowed by Dr. Styer, Class of 1982, and Mrs. Julia Styer. The recipient will be an entering medical student, with first preference given to a graduate of Piarist School in Floyd County, Ky. The second preference will be given to a graduate of St. Joseph Central Catholic High School in Huntington and the third preference given to a Cabell County resident. The award is renewable for three additional years to the first two preferences, pending normal academic progress.

• The Dr. Donnah Wolodkin Whitaker Scholarship was created by Dr. Wolodkin Whitaker, Class of 1984, who is a practicing anesthesiologist in northeast Ohio.  The recipient of this scholarship will be an entering medical student who is a resident of West Virginia.   First preference will be given to a resident of Wheeling, W.Va. If there are no applicants from Wheeling, preference will be given to a resident of Ohio County, Marshall County, or any other county in W.Va., in that order.

“Our medical school’s core mission is dedicated to educating students who will become primary care doctors and serve our nation’s rural populations,” said Linda Holmes, director of development and alumni affairs for the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine. “By helping reduce student debt, we allow students freedom to choose specialties based on interest and not on how they are compensated.”

For more information on the scholarships or to make a gift to the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, please contact Linda Holmes at 304-691-1711 or holmes@marshall.edu.

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Date Posted: Thursday, August 28, 2014