Barberton Citizens Hospital & Barberton Community Foundation Partner to Create Scholarship Fund
Date: 06-28-2005
By: Carl Bako
Email: cbako@bcfcharity.org
BARBERTON, Ohio – The Barberton Citizens Hospital medical staff and the Barberton Community Foundation have partnered to create the Barberton Citizens Hospital Medical Staff Endowed Scholarship Fund. The $100,000 endowed scholarship fund will assist qualified students from the city of Barberton, Ohio, who are pursuing their doctor of medicine degrees at the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NEOUCOM). The fund has been established with the NEOUCOM Foundation and scholarships will be awarded annually.
The original concept for the scholarship partnership was presented by James Kennedy, M.D., a 1984 graduate of NEOUCOM and a 1978 graduate of Barberton High School. In addition to being in medical practice in Barberton, Kennedy also serves as an assistant professor of clinical orthopaedic surgery at NEOUCOM. He encouraged the medical staff at Barberton Citizens Hospital to establish an endowed scholarship program to assist NEOUCOM students. The Barberton Community Foundation agreed to match the contributions from the medical staff, dollar-for-dollar, up to $50,000. “It is our hope that this scholarship will provide incentive for more students from Barberton to attend NEOUCOM and to return to our community to practice medicine,” said Kennedy.
“I am proud of the contribution from the medical staff at Barberton Citizens Hospital when presented with the challenge by Dr. Kennedy to provide for medical education for Barberton Citizens Hospital. The medical staff accepted this challenge and contributed $50,000 promptly to show their dedication and support to the community," said Dr. Ihsan Haque, chief of staff, Barberton Citizens Hospital.
Barberton Citizens Hospital Medical Staff Endowed Scholarship Fund – First Add
“The Barberton Community Foundation is excited about the opportunities available to Barberton students because of this scholarship fund. We are also pleased to have been able to collaborate with the medical staff of Barberton Citizens Hospital and NEOUCOM to assist in the creation of this new scholarship fund,” said Thomas Harnden, executive director of the Barberton Community Foundation. “It is our desire to continue to work with the medical staff, NEOUCOM and other donors to grow this scholarship fund to be able to provide even greater assistance to deserving medical students.”
“NEOUCOM is very grateful to the medical staff at Barberton Citizens Hospital, the Barberton Community Foundation and others for establishing this endowed scholarship. This is just another wonderful example of the ways in which community-based partnerships can provide direct benefits to our students and our communities,” said Lois Margaret Nora, M.D., J.D., NEOUCOM president and dean.
Barberton Citizens Hospital (BCH) has a proud history of dedication and community partnership. As a 311-bed, general acute care community hospital, Barberton Citizens provides inpatient services in the clinical areas of medicine, surgery, intensive care, cardiac care, extended care, psychiatry, pediatrics and obstetrics. These services are supported by a Center for Emergency Services. BCH also provides many outpatient services and community outreach programs. The hospital offers a Family Practice Residency program and is a major teaching hospital with the Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. Barberton Citizens Hospital is affiliated with Triad Hospitals Inc., Plano, Texas.
Created by the citizens of Barberton in 1996, the Barberton Community Foundation is a public charity which serves as a supporting organization to the City of Barberton, the Barberton City Schools and the Barberton Health District. The Foundation also supports nonprofit 501 (c) (3) organizations serving Barberton. The Foundation has awarded nearly $40 million in grants, including more than $1 million in college scholarships. For more information, call (330) 745-5995 or log on to www.bcfcharity.org.
NEOUCOM is a community-based, state medical school that offers a combined B.S./M.D. program with The University of Akron, Kent State University and Youngstown State University and offers direct entry and advanced standing routes to admission for students who earned their bachelor’s degrees at other universities. NEOUCOM also has collaborative arrangements with Kent State University and The University of Akron to offer graduate-level coursework and research opportunities in biomedical sciences and biomedical engineering leading to master’s and doctoral degrees. NEOUCOM and its associated hospitals co-sponsor graduate and continuing medical education programs for residents, physicians and allied health professionals.