Endowment Elevates FastBacc® Program

Global demand for healthcare professionals is at an all-time high. Baylor’s Louise Herrington School of Nursing (LHSON) is now better equipped to rapidly answer that call, thanks to an endowed faculty position that will lead an innovative program to train and equip the next generation of healthcare professionals and nurses.

A combined $1.5 million gift from the Deerbrook Charitable Trust of Chevy Chase, Maryland, and Harris and Anne Clark of Dallas established the Harris and Anne Clark FastBacc® Endowed Professorship, LHSON’s first endowed faculty position. It provides permanent, enduring support for the FastBacc® program, a 12-month accelerated post-baccalaureate Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

Beth Hultquist, Ph.D., inaugural holder of the Harris and Anne Clark FastBacc® Endowed Professorship, said the fast-paced program has excellent students and faculty.

“Our students enter the program with a previous degree and their prerequisites completed,” Hultquist said. “The strength of the program is in its diversity, with FastBacc® attracting students from various backgrounds and experiences. In addition, we offer strong student support while students are here in Dallas. We are proud of our program, our students and our results.”

The Clark Professorship provides enduring resources for the FastBacc® program through research support and salary and travel funding for the chairholder. As a permanent endowment, the Clark Professorship will be an attractive faculty recruiting and retention tool for the life of the program, providing stability and security to help LHSON in growing the academic track. The endowment also will create opportunities for faculty and students as resources that previously funded faculty salaries will now be available to fund other needs related to the program.

Harris and Anne Clark previously supported the FastBacc® program and LHSON through the establishment of several endowed scholarships. Knowing that FastBacc® students have access to fewer financial assistance opportunities due to the nature of their status as degree-holding students, the Clarks also created an emergency fund to support these students during their time at Baylor.

The Clark Professorship gift supports the key academic initiatives of Illuminate, the University’s strategic plan. The Clark Professorship will support the University’s Health Initiative to grow research and collaboration in this area, spanning all schools and colleges within the University.