Two well-known philanthropic organizations — the
E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation and the
France-Merrick Foundation — have made pledges that
reaffirm their continuing commitment to the Johns Hopkins
University School of
Nursing.
According to Martha N. Hill, dean of the school, the
two gifts of $5 million each now bring the total funds
raised for an addition to the School of Nursing building to
nearly $15 million.
"These foundations continue to be vital and steadfast
partners in helping us to develop the 21st-century Hopkins
brand of nursing and to address the critical nationwide
nursing shortage," Hill said. Their commitment and those of
others, she said, will be "instrumental in positioning us
as a global leader in nursing excellence. The additional
space will translate to enhanced programs, more faculty and
more opportunities to educate those who will set this
century's standards of nursing excellence."
The school's Anne M. Pinkard Building opened in
January 1998 as the first structure on the East Baltimore
campus dedicated solely to nursing education at Johns
Hopkins. The proposed addition, two-thirds of which will be
occupied by the School of Nursing and one-third by the
Phoebe
R. Berman Bioethics Institute, is scheduled to open in
2009 and will cost an estimated $26 million.
Walter D. Pinkard Jr., chair of the school's National
Advisory Council, a member of The Johns Hopkins University
board of trustees and president of the France-Merrick board
of directors, said he sees the addition to the building as
key to maintaining the school's prominence.
"That beautiful building played an important role in
moving the school to its current prominence and top
national rankings, but today it has reached capacity and
the school is beginning to feel the structural limitations.
With the addition," he said, "nursing education at Hopkins
will continue to be conducted in an environment of
excellence and innovation."
The two foundation gifts are part of the Johns
Hopkins: Knowledge for the World campaign. Commitments to
the campaign have reached nearly $1.9 billion toward a $2
billion goal. Priorities of the campaign, which benefits
both The Johns Hopkins University and The Johns Hopkins
Hospital and Health System, include strengthening endowment
for student aid and faculty support; advancing research,
academic and clinical initiatives; and building and
upgrading facilities on all campuses. The campaign began in
July 2000 and is scheduled to end in 2007.
The E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation was
established in 1975 by E. Rhodes Carpenter, founder of the
Carpenter Co., a firm that manufactures and distributes
polyurethane products such as mattresses and pillows, and
Leona Bowman Carpenter, a 1939 alumna who spent many years
in public health nursing, including several as an
instructor at Johns Hopkins.
The France-Merrick Foundation was created in 1998 when
the Jacob and Annita France Foundation and the Robert G.
and Anne M. Merrick Foundation were merged. The foundation
concentrates its grant making primarily within the greater
Baltimore area and in the areas of education, community
development, historic preservation and conservation, and
civic and cultural affairs.