In honor of the generous scholarship support provided by longtime St. Louisans Robert and Joan Luttig Schoor, Maryville University has named The Robert E. Schoor and Joan Luttig Schoor Undergraduate Nursing Program. Amid the nation’s urgent need for qualified nurses to join the healthcare workforce, their commitment to Maryville University’s McAuley School of Nursing is timely and consequential.

“The Schoors are an example of how the combination of passion for education and great healthcare creates the vision and courage to make good things happen,” said Mark Lombardi, PhD, president of Maryville University.

The alarm regarding the U.S. nursing shortage is well-founded. Over the next 30 years, the number of people ages 65 and older is expected to reach nearly 84 million—double the number of the older adult population in 2012—which means an increased need for geriatric healthcare, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor. The federal government also projects the total number of job openings for nurses due to growth and replacements will exceed one million over the next six years.

“The Schoors are an example of how the combination of passion for education and great healthcare creates the vision and courage to make good things happen.”
~ President Mark Lombardi, PhD

“Through the Schoors’ generosity we will be able to educate the next generation of outstanding nurses,” said Charles J. Gulas, PhD, dean of the Walker College of Health Professions. “The Schoors will enable talented students for years to come to pursue a Maryville nursing education.”

Over the past six years, the Schoors have donated to the building campaign for Walker Hall, home to Maryville’s College of Health Professions, and have provided scholarship support. In 2017, the couple announced a $20,000 matching gift to the University, with funds directed to Maryville’s Cyber Fusion Center, the Habitat for Humanity Fund and the Robert Schoor and Joan Luttig Schoor Annual Scholarship.

“The generosity of Robert and Joan Luttig Schoor means the world to the nursing students of the undergraduate program that now bears their names,” said Geralyn Frandsen, EdD, RN, director of Maryville’s undergraduate nursing program. “Their generosity will allow the delivery of high quality nursing care for many years to come.”