SEMO NAMES ENDOWED CHAIR WINNER

A professor emeritus at the University of Texas-Austin School of Nursing is the first recipient of the Margaret Woods Allen Endowed Chair in Nursing at Southeast Missouri State University.

Ruth "LaVerne" Gallman will assist Southeast's nursing faculty in regards to the gerontological nursing curriculum.

"Gerontology is an area of great concern in this region," said Catherine Taylor Foster, who heads Southeast's nursing department.

"We have a fast-growing population of older people in this area. This is an area in which we need to better prepare our students. The endowed chair will allow us to have an expert in this field who can assist in curriculum and grant development for services in this area," said Foster.

Gallman is winding up a weeklong stay at Southeast. She plans to return to Southeast next spring when she will make a gerontology-related presentation.

The Margaret Woods Allen Endowed Chair in Nursing was established through the Southeast Missouri University Foundation with a six-figure gift from Allen in 1988.

The Sikeston woman has been honored by Sigma Theta Tau International honor society of nursing and the university has recognized her for her philanthropy and leadership in that organization, of which she has been a member for more than 53 years.