{"id":4103,"date":"2012-03-12T15:52:08","date_gmt":"2012-03-12T19:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.cooperhealth.org\/news\/?p=4103"},"modified":"2012-03-22T11:39:33","modified_gmt":"2012-03-22T15:39:33","slug":"cooper-medical-school-receives-gift-of-1-055-million-from-rowan-alumnus-for-scholarship-fund","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cooperhealth.org\/news\/2012\/03\/cooper-medical-school-receives-gift-of-1-055-million-from-rowan-alumnus-for-scholarship-fund\/","title":{"rendered":"Cooper Medical School Receives Gift of $1.055 Million from Rowan Alumnus for Scholarship Fund"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

To the core, Lawrence J. Salva is a numbers guy.<\/p>\n

So when Salva, senior vice president, chief accounting officer and controller of Comcast Corporation, heard that the average medical school student graduates with more than $150,000 worth of debt, the Rowan University alumnus decided to make a difference and assist aspiring South Jersey physicians.<\/p>\n

Salva, vice chairman of the Rowan University Foundation Board, and his wife, Rita, of Princeton, have pledged $1.055 million to the Foundation to establish the Lawrence & Rita Salva Medical Scholars Fund at Rowan. The single largest gift to date for Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (CMSRU), the Salvas\u2019 pledge also is the largest one-time gift ever made to Rowan by an alumnus.<\/p>\n

Their gift will establish a $1 million endowment to benefit students enrolled at CMSRU. The additional $55,000 in contributions\u2014and the earnings on the endowment\u2014will provide $100,000 in scholarships for the medical school\u2019s charter class.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe debt numbers for medical school students are just so compelling,\u201d says Salva, who earned his bachelor\u2019s degree in business from the University in 1977.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re absolutely excited about the medical school and the promise it holds for South Jersey. This scholarship fund gives us a tremendous opportunity to help medical school students pursue their dreams as they work to make a positive impact on the lives of others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Supporting promising new physicians<\/strong><\/h3>\n

<\/strong>According to Founding Dean Paul Katz, MD, tuition for a CMSRU student is $32,860 in state, $52,680 out-of-state. Including tuition, fees and living expenses, the average yearly cost of living for a medical school student in New Jersey is $57,400, according to Katz.<\/p>\n

Medical school students often base their medical school decisions\u2014and their choice of specialty\u2014on their expected debt and the funding they can receive to help alleviate that debt. In the selection of the charter class, CMSRU has focused its mission to provide humanistic education in the art and science of medicine within a scientific and scholarly community in which inclusivity, excellence in patient care, innovative teaching, research, and service to the community are valued.<\/p>\n

The Salvas\u2019 gift will help CMSRU attract students from diverse backgrounds who resonate with this mission. The gift will provide those students with the freedom to select careers that help fulfill that mission without having to choose a specialty based on their need to repay large debts, according to Katz. Those mission-based careers include urban-focused primary care, an area that is much needed and has significant local and national shortages, Katz notes.<\/p>\n

\u201cScholarship support certainly increases the likelihood that New Jersey students will stay in the region to attend medical school and ultimately practice and become the kind of providers the state desperately needs,\u201d says Katz, noting that CMSRU received almost 3,000 applications for 50 spots in the medical school\u2019s charter class, which will begin studies in August.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince many of our accepted students have been accepted by other medical schools, offering them financial assistance is critical for us as we look to attract the most highly qualified students who match our mission and who need financial assistance to attend our school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Students from financially disadvantaged backgrounds often show more interest in becoming primary care physicians, particularly in urban areas, according to Katz.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re building a diverse student body that will be enriched by the work they\u2019ll be doing in the City of Camden,\u201d Katz says.<\/p>\n

About the scholarships<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Lawrence & Rita Salva Medical Scholars Fund will provide funding to award one or more of three distinct four-year scholarships each year beginning in 2012:<\/p>\n