The Dr. Michael Edmond Endowed Scholarship is designated for first-generation college students from Marion County who complete an undergraduate degree at Fairmont State University and go on to study at WVU School of Medicine (WVU Foundation Photo/Garrett Cullen).
Since graduating from the West Virginia University School of Medicine in 1986, Dr. Michael Edmond, a first-generation college student from Monongah, has consistently sent gifts of appreciation back to his alma mater.
“I never missed a year,” Edmond, chief medical officer for the WVU Health System, said. “I’m sure when I was an intern and resident, those donations were not very much. But it was important to me, and I wanted to do that.”
His continued support ultimately led to the development of the Dr. Michael Edmond Endowed Scholarship designated for Marion County residents, who, like himself, earn an undergraduate degree from Fairmont State University and go on to medical school at WVU. Scholarship recipients must also be first-generation college students.
“The fact that I was able to come here to go to medical school, which opened up so much to me, how can I not pay that back in some way?” Edmond said. “I wanted someone like me to be awarded this scholarship.”
Edmond’s scholarship was recently awarded to its inaugural recipient. Stephanie Ice is a non-traditional medical student embarking on a second career.
“I was a registered nurse at WVU Hospitals for about 15 years prior to medical school but had wanted to be a physician since I was a child,” Ice said. “I am a first-generation college student and will be the first physician in my family.”
While Edmond committed support to his alma mater immediately upon graduating, he did not initially consider a scholarship endowment. He was enticed to create a scholarship after learning he could make small gifts over time, rather than a lump-sum donation, to contribute specifically to his namesake scholarship.
Dr. Norman Ferrari III, chief academic officer for medical education, vice dean for education and academic affairs at the WVU School of Medicine, and chair of the Department of Medical Education, said every scholarship gift makes a difference for medical students at WVU.
“Dr. Edmond has distinguished himself on the national stage. In 2016, he was recognized by the School of Medicine with the Distinguished Alumnus Award,” Ferrari said. “His consistent generosity is greatly appreciated in support of our students who work so very hard every day.”
Ice said receiving aid was crucial for her to reach her goal.
“The ever-busy nature of medical school meant I had to quit my full-time job last summer,” Ice said. “I truly appreciate the scholarship provided by the Dr. Michael Edmond Endowed Scholarship. I was touched reading the history behind the formation of the scholarship and appreciate his support of Marion County residents who are pursuing a career in medicine. It meant a lot to me that the scholarship was coming from a physician who had a background similar to mine.”
After graduating from WVU, Edmond spent decades as an infectious diseases physician and hospital epidemiologist in academic medicine before transitioning into healthcare administration.
“The concepts of caring for or thinking about the health of a population underlies my career all along,” Edmond said.
Pursuing his passion took Edmond from the University of Pittsburgh to the University of Iowa and Virginia Commonwealth University.
“When I left Morgantown, we didn’t have a large academic medical center,” Edmond said. “It was a relatively small hospital.”
So, he could not have predicted that his career path would lead right back to where it all began. In 2020, Edmond returned to become the chief executive of University Health Associates and the vice dean for clinical affairs and chief medical officer of WVU Medicine.
Since Edmond left, the WVU Health System has grown to become West Virginia’s largest health system, comprising 25 hospitals and five institutes.
The WVU School of Medicine offers the most graduate medical education offerings in the state with 82 residency training programs, 50 of which are the only ones of their kind offered within West Virginia. There are rotation opportunities at many of the WVU Medicine partner hospitals and institutes, from the suburban hub of Morgantown to the many rural community care centers around the state.
“It was one of the surprises for me in coming back to look at this job,” Edmond said. “It was amazing to see how much growth there had been in the time I had been away not just on the Morgantown campus, but throughout the whole Health System. I was compelled, and I wanted to come back.”
Ice hopes to follow Edmond’s lead in philanthropy.
“After graduation I hope to also find myself in a position to pay it forward and support other medical students at the WVU School of Medicine, especially those who are non-traditional and from rural areas,” she said.
Edmond’s gift was made through the WVU Foundation, the nonprofit organization that receives and administers private donations on behalf of the University and its affiliated entities.