Texas Tidbits: Foundation issues record grant for Alzheimer’s institute

Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio will award more than $6.65 million to 86 nonprofit organizations to improve the health and well-being of communities in eight South Texas counties. That includes a grant of more than $1 million to the University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio for a new Alzheimer’s institute, the largest award in the foundation’s history. The grant will help establish a comprehensive Institute for Alzheimer and Neurodegenerative Disease at the UT Health Science Center to serve the estimated 55,000 patients and caregivers in San Antonio and South Texas. “This dreaded disease affects millions, and the foundation’s trustees recognized that this was the project which needed more of God’s money in 2015,” said Cody Knowlton, president and CEO of Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio. Since issuing their first annual grant awards in 2005, Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio, in conjunction with the former Baptist Health Services Foundation, has awarded 792 health-related grants totaling $55,468,903 to organizations in Bexar County and seven surrounding counties.

New director named at Texas Baptist Children’s Home. The board of directors for Texas Baptist Children’s Home, part of the Children at Heart Ministries family of organizations, named Debbie Rippstein executive director of Texas Baptist Children’s Home in Round Rock. Debbie Rippstein Rippstein has more than 30 years experience in child care administration and executive leadership. Since 2007, she was executive director at Gracewood in Houston, a Children at Heart Ministries residential home for single mothers and their children. Prior to serving at Gracewood, she served in various leadership roles at Texas Baptist Children’s Home from 1985 to 2003.  

ETBU names Hadlock vice president. East Texas Baptist University named Heather Hadlock vice president for student affairs. She served previously at Dallas Baptist University in a variety of administrative roles, including assistant vice president for administrative affairs, associate dean of students, director of residence life and director of student life. Heather HadlockHadlock received her bachelor’s degree from Hardin-Simmons University, earned a master’s degree from the University of North Texas and completed her doctorate in educational leadership from DBU. Before entering higher education, she was an elementary teacher in Grand Prairie four years. “Dr. Hadlock is an effective administrative leader with diverse experiences in her 14-year career in Christian higher education and is a collaborative leader, who has forged strong partnership between the academic and student affairs divisions,” ETBU President Blair Blackburn said. “She has worked to build bridges that connect faculty and academic deans with student affairs staff in order to provide the highest quality of services and support to student success and learning.” 

Editor’s Note:  The item on Debbie Rippstein was edited after originally posted to clarify that the board of Texas Baptist Children’s Home, not Children at Heart Ministries, named her to the new leadership post.