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Department of Nurse Anesthesia celebrates Herbert T. Watson professorship investiture

Dr. Sheldon M. Retchin, Dr. Michael Rao, Col. Herbert T. Watson, Dr. Cecil B. Drain, Dr. Michael D. Fallacaro and Dr. William P. Kotti join together at the Scott House.
Dr. Sheldon M. Retchin, Dr. Michael Rao, Col. Herbert T. Watson, Dr. Cecil B. Drain, Dr. Michael D. Fallacaro and Dr. William P. Kotti join together at the Scott House.

On April 29, 2013, the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Allied Health Professions’ Department of Nurse Anesthesia hosted a celebration at the Scott House to invest the inaugural recipient of the Herbert T. Watson Endowed Professorship, Dr. Michael D. Fallacaro, as well as to recognize each member of the nurse anesthesia faculty for starting an endowed scholarship or fund. VCU President, Dr. Michael Rao, presided over the ceremony. Remarks were given by Dr. Sheldon M. Retchin, Dr. Cecil B. Drain, Dr. Michael D. Fallacaro, Col. Herbert T. Watson and Mrs. Elizabeth Howell. More than 100 family members, friends, alumni, faculty and students attended this historic event and made the afternoon very special.

Watson created the first individually endowed professorship in the Department of Nurse Anesthesia. Endowed professorships are one of the highest forms of recognition provided by the university and are awarded only to a select few recipients who meet very stringent requirements. The Herbert T. Watson Endowed Professorship was established to support distinguished educators and researchers in the specialty of nurse anesthesia, with a primary goal of enhancing education and continued education in nurse anesthesiology through recruitment and retention of quality educators.

Awards on display at the Scott House.
Awards on display at the Scott House.

While it is an accomplishment for any department to have a few endowed scholarships or funds that have been established by faculty members, to have every faculty member establish one is unprecedented. Several nurse anesthesia faculty members noted that their donations were inspired by the strong leadership and vision of their chairman, the generosity of Watson and the dedication of their students (past and present). It is the hope of the faculty that these scholarships and funds will help the department retain and recruit the best and brightest students, and continue to offer the best educational opportunities for these students even during economic hardships.