By FHSU University Relations<\/b><\/p>\n
Throughout its history, Fort Hays State University has been fortunate to have many accomplished and dedicated faculty members. Dr. Marcia Bannister is a retired FHSU professor and chair of the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders who stands out through all she has done and continues to do for the university.<\/p>\n
Bannister also plans to support Fort Hays State after her passing. By FHSU University Relations Throughout its history, Fort Hays State University has been fortunate to have many accomplished and dedicated faculty members. Dr. Marcia Bannister… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11722],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-press-releases"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38269"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38269\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":38270,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38269\/revisions\/38270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nAt the time of her retirement in 2004, her four sons and her colleagues created the Marcia Bannister Fund for Excellence in recognition of her leadership and dedication to the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and the Herndon Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic. She earned many awards and honors during her career and, along with her colleagues, brought accreditation to the speech-language pathology program.
\n\u201cThe expansion of the Marcia Bannister Fund for Excellence, celebrated today, is indicative of her thoughtfulness for those she has served for all of these years,\u201d said Dr. Jeff Briggs, interim provost and vice president for academic affairs.
\n\u201cThese resources will support faculty and staff development, graduate students in the form of scholarships and assistantships, and the funds will support the region, as our graduates enter the field better prepared to serve the needs of western Kansas and beyond.\u201d
\nBannister graduated from FHSU with a B.S. in elementary education in 1961 and an M.S. in 1962 majoring in speech therapy and minoring in psychology. Currently, she serves on the FHSU Foundation Board of Trustees and stays informed on advancements throughout the university.
\nBannister\u2019s planned giving initiative will provide supplemental financial resources to enhance the exceptionality of the speech-language program. Her altruism will allow the speech-language pathology program and the Herndon Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic to fulfill their needs and realize their goals.
\nWorking closely with the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and the Herndon Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic, she specified certain parameters for how the chair of the Communication Sciences and Disorders Department may allocate the annual earnings from the endowed fund.
\nBannister recounted the history of the program from its days in a small area of the Picken Hall basement to an academic department with spacious accommodations in Albertson Hall. Her own history included the mentorship of founder Geneva Herndon.
\n\u201cI think you can see that my career as a speech-language pathologist has touched my heart and soul, and now my pocketbook,\u201d she said. \u201cI want to help the program educate students in an exceptional manner.\u201d
\n\u201cThe speech-language pathology program will continue to touch many lives in the future,\u201d she said. \u201cIt will prepare students for careers in assisting clients young and old. It will benefit from additional financial resources. Thus my gift. With the continued support of the FHSU administration, our quality will shine out!\u201d
\nBannister established her planned gift in working with the Fort Hays State University Foundation. The majority of the retirement account she built during her 35-year tenure at FHSU will go to the Marcia Bannister Fund for Excellence. Beginning this year, 73 percent of the minimum annual distribution from the retirement account will go into the Marcia Bannister Fund for Excellence. Upon her passing, the same percentage of what remains in the retirement account will be gifted to the FHSU fund.
\n\u201cI want to thank Dr. Marcia Bannister for telling us the history \u2013 it\u2019s so important because it not only shapes who we are, but also who we\u2019re becoming,\u201d said FHSU President Tisa Mason. \u201cYou epitomize all that Fort Hays State University stands for. As a student at FHSU, you found a mentor, a dream and a vision \u2013 or in your words, you found your heart and your soul \u2013 and that\u2019s what we want for all of our students.\u201d
\n\u201cThroughout your career,\u201d she said, \u201cyou paid it forward with grace and compassion, and you\u2019re continuing that today with a magnificent gift, and we cannot thank you enough.\u201d
\nWith this gift to Fort Hays State, Bannister becomes a member of the FHSU Foundation\u2019s Wooster Society, which honors those who ensure the future and strength of the university through planned giving.
\n\u201cGifts like this don\u2019t happen every day,\u201d said Jason Williby, president and CEO of the FHSU Foundation. \u201cOur Fort Hays State Foundation benefits greatly from the leadership of individuals like Marcia, who have stepped forward and allowed us to share their story.\u201d
\n\u201cIn Marcia\u2019s case,\u201d he said, \u201cshe\u2019s leaving a legacy via her retirement account, but for others it may be a cash gift, a life estate reserve, a gift of oil, land or property.\u201d
\nTo learn more about the FHSU Foundation and planned giving, visit https:\/\/foundation.fhsu.edu<\/a>, call 785-628-5620 or email foundation@fhsu.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"