West Virginia University Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center Development

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Texas A&M ’s Colenda named WVU’s Chancellor for Health Sciences

08/19/2009

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Christopher C. Colenda, M.D, M.P.H., the Jean and Thomas McMullin Dean of Medicine and Vice President for Clinical Affairs at Texas A&M Health Science Center, was named Chancellor for Health Sciences on Aug. 19.

A respected academic physician, researcher and leader, Dr. Colenda, 57, was selected by WVU President James. P. Clements, following a national search which brought three finalists to campus. He will begin his new role Oct. 30.

“This is certainly a wonderful day for West Virginia University, our Health Sciences enterprise and our State,” said President Clements. “Chris Colenda is a visionary...a strategic thinker...an energetic and dynamic leader...and above all, he is committed to the educational, research, clinical and outreach missions of WVU Health Sciences. He is also focused on moving us to higher levels of competitiveness and success. He is the very best fit for this important position.”

Clements said he spoke to Colenda’s colleagues, and was impressed with their assessment of his work ethic, high standards and collaborative team-building style.

“It is obvious that he is a true champion of health sciences education, health and medical research, clinical and patient care and overall community engagement,” Clements said. “His references were all glowing.”

Clements said Colenda’s stellar career as a faculty member, researcher, department chair, dean, vice president and now chancellor “speaks volumes about his abilities.”

He also pointed to Colenda‘s experience in legislative circles and fund-raising.

“It is clear that he understands the role of relationship-building and trust in raising the profile of health sciences,” Clements said.

“What we do here is amazing, and Chris Colenda — as our new Chancellor for Health Sciences — will help bring people together to lead our University and our Health Sciences Center to even greater success and stability.”

Dr. Colenda addressed a crowd gathered at Patteson Auditorium for the announcement, saying, “I am truly honored to have been offered this position. I consider it a privilege of a lifetime.”

“I offer my sincere thanks to the members of the Search Committee and to President Clements for the confidence you have placed in me, and I look forward to putting my background to work for this University and this academic Health Sciences enterprise in solving the health care needs of our citizens through public service, professional and interdisciplinary education, research and high quality patient-centered care.”

He added, “During this process, I have not only had a chance to meet with the search committee and the health sciences leadership, but I have met faculty, students and staff who make WVU Health Sciences the great place that it is. And, I can’t wait to get started.”

During his Aug. 2-3 campus visits, Colenda noted that he rose through the ranks of academic medical education as a faculty member, researcher, department chair, dean and vice president.

“At my core, I consider myself a physician, who has had the privilege of taking care of patients, educating the next generation of physicians and health professionals, and contributing to scientific discovery. I bring this perspective to my role as an academic administrator. It is a calling of high purpose, and my responsibility is that of being a servant leader.”

He added, “No single person can lead without the support of many...this is a team and we will build organizational partnerships and trust, and I will do my very best to make us all proud.”

Colenda has been Dean of Medicine and Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science and Professor of Health Policy Management at Texas A&M since January 2003. In March, he became Vice President for Clinical Affairs.

His background also includes faculty and administrative appointments at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University.

He started his college career at the United States Military Academy at West Point and went on to earn degrees from Wittenburg University, B.A., chemistry; The Medical College of Virginia, M.D.; and Johns Hopkins University, M.P.H.

A geriatric psychiatrist by training, he is currently a member of the Executive Committee of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) and a Psychiatry Director for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN).

He was also named to the Liaison Committee for Medical Education (LCME) in early 2007 for a three-year term, and was recently appointed to the Psychological Health Advisory Committee of the Defense Health Board of the Department of Defense. He is a member of the Administrative Board of the Council of Deans for the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC).

Colenda served as the president of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) in 2006, and was selected as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging in Washington, D.C., in 2005. He has published over 140 peer-reviewed manuscripts, abstracts and book chapters, primarily in geriatric mental health services research.

He is married to Kathryn W. Colenda, and they have two daughters, Meredith, 28, and Stephanie, 22.

In announcing Colenda’s appointment, Clements expressed special thanks to the search committee, led by Curtis “Hank” Barnette, for its dedication and commitment and for the helpful input from faculty, staff, students, alumni and community members during the campus process.

“I especially want to thank the members of the search committee for the many hours they put into the screening, interviewing and consultation process,” he said. “I also appreciate the input I received from the health care community, faculty, staff, alumni, students and community members as a result of our campus forums. All of this information proved extremely valuable to me in my final selection of Chris Colenda as WVU’s Chancellor for Health Sciences.”

He also thanked Dr. Fred R. Butcher, who has been serving as interim vice president for the past two years. Butcher, who began his career as a scientist at WVU more than 30 years ago, was the founding director of the Mary Babb Randolph Cancer Center.

Butcher assumed the interim vice president‘s role in April 2007 when former Vice President Robert M. D’Alessandri left for the presidency of the Commonwealth Medical College in Scranton, Pa.

WVU’s Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center includes the schools of dentistry, medicine, nursing and pharmacy. In addition to the main campus in Morgantown, there are campuses in Charleston and Martinsburg, and a statewide network of rural health centers where students from all four schools learn clinical skills. WVU's healthcare affiliates — WVU Hospitals, University Health Associates, and the West Virginia United Health System - are the state’s largest healthcare delivery network. Biomedical research by HSC faculty is on a steady upward trend, with a substantial increase in NIH funding over the past several years.

Dr. Colenda’s salary has been set at $435,000.

For comments from state, University and Health Sciences leaders, along with photos, video, curriculum vitae and position responsibilities, go to http://hscchancellor.wvu.edu.

To send a congratulatory message to Chancellor Colenda, e-mail ChancellorHSC@hsc.wvu.edu.

written by HSC News Service

WVU awarded scholarships for accelerated nursing students for second year

08/17/2009

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — College graduates who want to pursue an additional degree in nursing often face financial challenges. A grant program from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is helping students in the West Virginia University School of Nursing move into the profession.

Grants provided through the RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program will build upon the WVU School of Nursing’s previous efforts to increase the number of students enrolled in its accelerated nursing program and to diversify its student base. This significant national initiative, launched in 2008 by RWJF and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), aims to help alleviate the nation’s nursing shortage by dramatically expanding the pipeline of students in accelerated nursing programs.

This is the second year that WVU students have been eligible for the program. The five $10,000 scholarships that were awarded for the 2008-2009 school year allowed students from diverse backgrounds to pursue their nursing education at WVU. The scholarships allowed for an increase in the number of admitted students to the BS/BA to BSN program so that 30 new students began the program in May 2009.

Five additional $10,000 scholarships are available this year.

The total enrollment in WVU’s program has increased from eight students when the program started in 2001 to a current enrollment of more than 50 students. More than 100 students have graduated from the program and gone on to become registered nurses.

“Our second degree students bring a wealth of life experiences, maturity and motivation to their study of nursing,” said Elisabeth N. Shelton, Ph.D., associate dean of undergraduate academic affairs for the WVU School of Nursing. “These scholarships will help to further increase the diversity of the students in this program so that all of our students will ultimately benefit.”

Through the RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program, scholarships in the amount of $10,000 each will be distributed to entry-level nursing students in accelerated programs during the 2009-2010 academic year. Award preference is given to students from groups underrepresented in nursing or from disadvantaged backgrounds. Grant funding will be used by schools to help leverage support for new faculty resources and provide mentoring and leadership development resources to ensure successful program completion by scholarship recipients.

“New Careers in Nursing aims to safeguard the health of the nation by helping to ease the nurse and nurse faculty shortage. Nurses are critical to delivering healthcare that is effective, patient-centered, timely efficient and equitable,” said RWJF Senior Adviser for Nursing Susan B. Hassmiller, Ph.D. “This important initiative will also advance the Foundation’s strategic goal of promoting a health professional workforce that reflects the diversity of the American public.”

The RWJF New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program supports accelerated programs, which offer the most efficient route to licensure as a registered nurse for adults who have already completed a baccalaureate or graduate degree in a discipline other than nursing.

Although enrollment in these programs has steadily increased over the past few years, many potential students are unable to enroll since already having a college degree disqualifies them from receiving most federal financial aid programs for entry-level students. The New Careers in Nursing scholarships address this problem, and will also alleviate the overall nursing shortage, by enabling hundreds of students to launch their nursing careers through accelerated education not otherwise possible without scholarships.

Additionally, the program targets the need to recruit students from groups underrepresented in nursing or disadvantaged backgrounds. According to the National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice, diversifying the nursing profession is essential to meeting the healthcare needs of the nation and reducing health disparities that exist among many underserved populations. Data from the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration also show that nurses entering the profession at the baccalaureate level are four times more likely than other nurses to pursue a graduate degree in nursing, which is the required credential to teach.

For the 2009-2010 WVU school year, the five $10,000 scholarships will be awarded to students who are admitted to the BS/BA to BSN program for May 2010. Interested applicants can apply to the School of Nursing between Sept. 1 and Dec. 1. Those who meet admissions requirements will be invited for an interview and asked to complete an application for the scholarship. Final admissions and scholarship decisions will be announced in February 2010.

AACN serves as the National Program Office for this RWJF initiative and oversees the grant application submission and review processes.

For information about the scholarship program see http://www.newcareersinnursing.org.

For more information about the WVU School of Nursing see http://www.hsc.wvu.edu/son/.

written by HSC News Service

Fringe Little League raises money for WVU Children’s Hospital

Fringe Little League presents their gift

08/10/2009

For the second year in a row, the Fringe Little League Baseball Association has donated money to WVU Children’s Hospital. In the fall of ‘08, the Fringe played its second annual coaches’ softball tournament, raising $6,000. The coaches also held a softball tournament for the Child Life Program at WVU Children’s Hospital, raising $5,000.

“We are so proud of the Fringe Little League Baseball Association coaches for setting such a wonderful example. They are caring adults making an important effort on behalf of children who are admitted to the hospital,” said Children’s Hospital Director Cheryl Jones.

“The money donated to the Child Life Program goes toward books and games and other items that make a hospital stay more comfortable for a child.”

The Fringe Little League Association consists of several community Little League teams in Marion County.

WVU Children’s Hospital to benefit from Dairy Queen’s Miracle Treat Day Thursday

08/10/2009

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — If you’re looking for a way to beat the summer heat Thursday (Aug. 13), stop by your local Dairy Queen for the Fourth Annual Miracle Treat Day. Proceeds from Dairy Queen Blizzard sales will benefit West Virginia University Children’s Hospital.

For Miracle Treat Day, Dairy Queen will donate at least $1 of all Blizzards sold to Children’s Miracle Network. WVU Children’s Hospital is the only Children’s Miracle Network hospital in West Virginia.

Dairy Queen stores in Reedsville, Westover, Clarksburg and Morgantown are joining forces with 44 stores statewide on Miracle Treat Day. Last year, the event raised $40,630 for WVU Children’s Hospital.

“There are so many inspiring people from all walks of life but none more than young, hospitalized children who face incredible odds every day,” said Michael Keller, chief brand officer for International Dairy Queen Inc. “It’s the courage of these children that makes Miracle Treat Day so meaningful and important to all of us in the Dairy Queen family, and we thank everyone who comes out in support of this cause and helps make Miracle Treat Day such a success.”

written by HSC News Service

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