BLINN COLLEGE AWARDS FIRST AUGGIE DARR BABBITT SCHOLARSHIPS

  

Two Blinn College Physical Therapist Assistant students are awarded first Auggie Darr Babbitt scholarship

Auggie Darr Babbitt was instrumental in establishing the Blinn College Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) Program and earning its initial accreditation. She devoted herself to transferring invaluable knowledge from the classroom to the clinical setting to improve patient care and assist students in preparing for the state licensure exam.

Just over two years ago, Babbitt lost her fight with ovarian cancer. To honor her legacy, Babbitt’s family, friends and colleagues established a $22,000 endowed scholarship through the Blinn College Foundation, which provides support for programs and activities that enhance the quality of education at Blinn. The scholarship is intended for outstanding second-year PTA students demonstrating financial need.

For the first time since the endowment, two exemplary PTA students were each awarded a $550 Auggie Darr Babbitt scholarship.

“I am so grateful for this opportunity,” said Shelly Acree, a scholarship recipient from Snook. “I will continue to work very hard in the program and I hope I can be as much of an inspiration as Auggie was with her patient care.”

“It’s such a great honor,” said Jodi Thornton, a scholarship recipient from Wortham. “The presence she had and the hope she inspired—I can only hope to be that for my patients one day.”

Blinn’s PTA program, incepted in 1997, instructs students in the use of specialized equipment and personalized patient care. First-year PTA students spend most of their time in a classroom setting and in the lab, while second-year students participate in clinical rotations at area physical therapy facilities.

Once a student is admitted to the PTA program, he or she becomes part of the Student Physical Therapy Assistant Association (SPTAA), the official student club of PTA. Over the course of  the two-year program, students lead and participate in a number of charitable fundraisers and activities, including the Special Olympics Texas meet and the Down Syndrome Association of the Brazos Valley’s Buddy Walk.

For more information, visit: www.blinn.edu/twe/pta/index.html.