Newman University has received a $100,000 gift from Legacy Bank of Colwich, Sedgwick and Wichita to support the renovation and upgrading of existing nursing educational facilities and the building of a new, technologically advanced science and health sciences educational facility on the Newman campus in Wichita.
Newman University had been raising funds for these facilities for several years during the silent phase of the $30 million Facing Forward – A Campaign for Newman University. The public phase of the campaign was announced in February.
The gift will help Newman in its ongoing commitment to produce well-educated graduates to meet the health care needs in Wichita and the surrounding area, said Newman President Noreen M. Carrocci, Ph.D.
“We are very grateful to our longtime friends at Legacy Bank for this generous gift,” Carrocci said. “This will help Newman continue to offer high-quality programs in the sciences, nursing and the health sciences. Our graduates are known throughout the area for their expert clinical skills and their caring attitude toward their patients. The new and improved facilities made possible by donors such as Legacy Bank will help a new generation of Newman graduates serve people in the Wichita area and throughout the region.”
Legacy Bank has been a consistent supporter of Newman dating back to at least 1987. The bank has provided gifts for the university’s athletics programs, student scholarships and fundraising events, and for several years has been a presenting sponsor of the university’s largest annual fundraiser, Oktoberfest – Party on the Plaza.
“Our connection to Newman is three-fold and goes back quite some time,” said Legacy Bank President and Chairman Frank A. Suellentrop. “One of my mom’s sisters was a nun at the ASC convent in Wichita [The Adorers of the Blood of Christ (ASC) are the founding and sponsoring order of Newman University], so there’s a family connection to the sisters and the university. There is also a Catholic connection. Legacy Bank has supported many Catholic organizations and events. And third, we have been very supportive of Newman in the past, and want to support the university now in its efforts to develop their programs and facilities in science and the health care fields, which will be a real asset to the community.”
Facing Forward – A Campaign for Newman University is designed to raise funds to build the 51,400 square foot science center to be named in honor of the Most Rev. Eugene J. Gerber, Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Wichita, a longstanding advocate for Catholic higher education and Newman University. Funds raised through the Facing Forward campaign are also being used to renovate facilities in the existing Eck Hall, which houses the university’s nursing and health sciences programs, as well as to grow the university’s endowment and provide for the Newman Fund, which supports student scholarships.
The new and renovated facilities on the Newman campus will allow for up-to-date technology and equipment, more research areas for students and faculty, and “smart” classrooms. The facilities will also include simulation labs, which are increasingly necessary to properly train clinical skills and to meet industry and accreditation standards.
Renovations to Eck Hall are currently underway and will be completed for the Fall 2016 semester. Newman recently broke ground for the Bishop Gerber Science Center, and expects to have the building completed by August 2017 in time for the beginning of the Fall 2017 semester.
About Newman University:
Newman University is a Catholic university named for John Henry Cardinal Newman and founded by the Adorers of the Blood of Christ for the purpose of empowering graduates to transform society. The university is highly respected for the quality of its science, nursing and health sciences education programs, and the high quality of its graduates:
- 96 percent of Newman pre-med graduates who applied were accepted into medical schools over the past 15 years. For the 2015-2016 academic year, 11 Newman University students who applied for medical school admission were accepted.
- 100 percent of 2015 Newman Nurse Anesthesia graduates (92 percent on the first attempt) passed accreditation exams. The national average first-time pass rate was 87 percent.
- 100 percent of Newman 2015 nursing program graduates passed the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX). Graduates of the Newman program have a 99.57 percent pass rate over the past five years.
- 100 percent of Newman Occupational Therapy Assistant graduates passed the NBCOT licensing exam in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Newman is the only OTA program of the five programs in the state of Kansas that can make that claim.
- 100 percent of Newman Radiologic Technology graduates from 2013 to 2015 passed their licensure exams, with an average first-time pass rate of 84 percent.
- 100 percent of 2015 Sonography graduates passed their American Registry for Diagnostic Medical Sonography exams (physics, vascular, obstetrics).
- 92 percent of December 2015 Newman Respiratory Care graduates passed their Certified Respiratory Therapist (CRT) licensure exam.
- Other science graduates are accepted into postgraduate programs in chemistry, biology and other science fields at universities across the nation, including such prestigious schools as Notre Dame, Washington University and Iowa State.
For more information about Newman University, go to www.newmanu.edu.
About Legacy Bank:
- Legacy Bank is a fifth-generation, locally owned bank. The bank was founded in 1886 as the Bank of Colwich, later re-charted as the State Bank of Colwich, in Colwich, Kan.
- In 1911, Clemens Suellentrop purchased a major interest in the bank. The Suellentrop Family has maintained ownership and leadership since that time.
- The bank continued to serve the Colwich area through World War I, the Great Depression, and World War II. John A. Suellentrop was elected president of the bank in 1937.
- In 1956, The State Bank of Colwich was admitted to the FDIC.
- In 1972, John F. Suellentrop became president of the bank, and his brother, Clem J. Suellentrop, became vice president. Clem Suellentrop became president in 1988, and served at that post until 1991, when current president and chairman Frank A. Suellentrop became President.
- The bank expanded into the Wichita area in 1992. In 2000, the present name of Legacy Bank was adopted.
- The bank now operates in six locations in Colwich, Wichita and Sedgwick, Kan. Legacy Bank offers a complete line of accounts and services, including CDs and IRAs, consumer and commercial loans, online banking and more.
- Legacy Bank launched the Local Legacy initiative in 2015 to support the community and bring attention to locally owned and operated businesses.
For more information about Legacy Bank visit www.legacy-bank.com.
For more information about Facing Forward – A Campaign for Newman University, visit www.newmanff.com, or contact Clark Schafer at 316-942-4291, ext. 2164, or [email protected].
