A new scholarship to benefit respiratory therapy students at Hinds Community College has been established as a memorial to two pulmonary physicians who made exceptional contributions to the success of Hinds’ graduates: Dr. Wallace Conerly and Dr. William “Chappie” Pinkston.
The respiratory therapy community was greatly saddened in 2011 to have lost these two champions in a single year. As a tribute to both of them, a joint scholarship has been established in their names, said Shirley Jenkins, respiratory therapy instructor at Jackson Campus-Nursing/Allied Health Center.
“Dr. Conerly and Dr. Pinkston were both highly respected pulmonologists who had attained high levels of success in their field. This scholarship is an expression of gratitude for them, and we hope it will help future students remember that they walk in the footprint of these giants,” Jenkins said.
Dr. Pinkston was a professor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. For 25 years Dr. Pinkston served as the medical director of the Hinds Respiratory Care Technology program. This involved coming to the college almost weekly to lecture or to attend student presentations of patient cases. He had a powerful gift for teaching and could make complex medical information easily understood by novice students, Jenkins said.
Over the years Dr. Conerly spent many Friday mornings at NAHC. He would drop by on his way to work as vice chancellor of the University of Mississippi Medical Center to hear the Respiratory Therapy sophomores present a patient case to their faculty and classmates.
Dr. Conerly would then follow up with a brief lecture to help illuminate the topic at hand. These lectures provided far more than the value of the information he shared with the students, Jenkins said.
“The world of medicine held them both in high regard, and their time was very valuable. At the same time, both men knew the value of respiratory therapy to healthcare and devoted a significant amount of time to ensuring the success of our program and its students,” Jenkins said.
The Respiratory Therapy Department at Jackson Campus-Nursing/Allied Health Center has established the Conerly & Pinkston Scholarship.
For more information about the scholarship, contact Shirley Jenkins, Respiratory Therapy Department, 601.376.4827. For more information on donating to scholarships at Hinds Community College, call 601.857.3363 or see the alumni/foundation tab at www.hindscc.edu.