Baylor’s School of Nursing in Dallas Hosts Pre Gala VIP Reception Nov. 3

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Contact: Eric Eckert, 254-710-1964

Galas have raised more than $1.7 million for student scholarships in three years

DALLAS, Texas (Nov. 3, 2014) – Baylor University’s Louise Herrington School of Nursing will host its second annual Pre Gala VIP reception at 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 3, at the Belo Mansion, 2101 Ross Ave., in Dallas. This event continues the tradition of spotlighting championship efforts to raise scholarship funds for student nurses.

The evening will be hosted by Baylor Scott & White Health. Dr. John B. McWhorter III, senior vice president of Baylor Health Care System and president of Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, and Joel T. Allison, B.A. ’70, FACHE, chief executive officer of Baylor Health Care System and Baylor Scott & White Health, will welcome guests.

Bill and Tammy Simon, Baylor parents and the event’s honored guests, will give a short keynote address. Bill Simon was U.S. CEO of Walmart from 2010-2014, and Tammy Simon is a former nurse practitioner and cancer survivor.

The reception will include remarks by Ken Starr, president and chancellor of Baylor University; Alice Starr, Baylor’s first lady; and Shelley F. Conroy, Ed.D., M.S.N., R.N., C.N.E., dean of the Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences at Baylor University, which includes the School of Nursing.

A video, featuring a message from Robert Griffin III, B.A. ’10, quarterback for the Washington Redskins and Baylor’s 2011 Heisman Trophy winner, will share about the importance of nursing and nursing student scholarships.

Griffin will give the keynote address at the Louise Herrington School of Nursing’s 2015 Going for the Gold Gala Saturday, Feb. 28, at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. Gala sponsorship opportunities will be available soon and individual tickets will go on sale in early 2015.

Since 2012, the galas have raised more than $1.7 million for student scholarships.

Past gala speakers include Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton, former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith, Baylor's championship-winning women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey, and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 16,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Baylor sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and is a founding member of the Big 12 Conference.

ABOUT LOUISE HERRINGTON SCHOOL OF NURSING

The Baylor Louise Herrington School of Nursing was established in 1909 as a diploma program within Baylor Hospital in Dallas, which is now Baylor University Medical Center, and in 1950 became one of the six degree-granting schools of Baylor University. The first Bachelor of Science in nursing degrees were awarded in 1954, establishing the school as one of the oldest baccalaureate nursing programs in the United States. In 1999, the School was renamed the Louise Herrington School of Nursing after Louise Herrington Ornelas, a 1992 Baylor Alumna Honoris Causa, made a $13 million endowment gift to the school. The School of Nursing offers a bachelor of science in nursing degree and a master of science in nursing degrees in advanced neonatal nursing, nursing administration and management, and family nurse practitioner programs, which are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. The School also offers a nurse midwifery doctorate in nursing practice.