Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio awards $182,500 to UT Health Science Center students

SAN ANTONIO (Aug. 26, 2009) — Forty-eight students at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio will receive scholarships totaling $182,500 this academic year from the Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio. This is the largest annual award of health professional education scholarships granted to the Health Science Center by the foundation since it began operations in 2005.

The Baptist Health Foundation has given $472,500 to support 133 Health Science Center students since 2006. “One can never estimate how greatly this generosity will impact the health care of our state,” said William L. Henrich, M.D., M.A.C.P., president of the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. “These future health professionals are valuable resources for our future, and an investment in them is one of the wisest investments that can be made.”

W. Frank Elston, president and CEO of the Baptist Health Foundation, said the Health Science Center scholarships are part of $827,543 awarded this year to students at 10 San Antonio colleges and universities. “Our trustees are pleased to provide scholarships to these deserving students who will be our next generation of health care providers,” Elston said.

The 2009 Baptist Health Foundation scholarships to the Health Science Center include a major focus on the nursing profession. As numerous studies have shown, nurses are in short supply in Texas and the nation. Twenty-two scholarships totaling $102,500 will go to students enrolled in the Health Science Center School of Nursing. They will support three undergraduate students, 11 master’s degree students and eight Ph.D. students.

The School of Health Professions, which trains leaders in professions that work closely with and are vital members of the health care team, will receive 20 scholarships totaling $50,000. These will support three undergraduate students apiece in dental hygiene, respiratory care and clinical laboratory sciences, four master’s degree students apiece in physician assistant studies and physical therapy, and three master’s degree students in occupational therapy.

Six scholarships totaling $30,000 will aid the education of two School of Medicine students, two Dental School students and two clinical pharmacy students.

Dr. Henrich thanked Ken Andrews, Ph.D., chairman of the board of the Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio, and the rest of the trustees for their decision to support Health Science Center students. Dr. Andrews is a longtime Health Science Center employee and currently serves as deputy director of academic technology services.


The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio is the leading research institution in South Texas and one of the major health sciences universities in the world. With an operating budget of $668 million, the Health Science Center is the chief catalyst for the $16.3 billion biosciences and health care sector in San Antonio’s economy. The Health Science Center has had an estimated $36 billion impact on the region since inception and has expanded to six campuses in San Antonio, Laredo, Harlingen and Edinburg. More than 25,600 graduates (physicians, dentists, nurses, scientists and other health professionals) serve in their fields, including many in Texas. Health Science Center faculty are international leaders in cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, aging, stroke prevention, kidney disease, orthopaedics, research imaging, transplant surgery, psychiatry and clinical neurosciences, pain management, genetics, nursing, dentistry and many other fields. For more information, visit www.uthscsa.edu.



Share This Article!