The Paul R. Willging Endowment has been established to provide both student scholarship support and enhanced learning opportunities in the areas of aging related services and long term care. Scholarships will provide financial assistance to those students pursuing careers that will positively impact older adults in the management and delivery of care to the older adult population.  Enhanced learning opportunities will be provided to students, faculty, health care practitioners and policy makers in the area of aging related services.

This Endowment is designed to further Dr. Willging’s lifelong commitment to serve the long term care needs of seniors.  Dr. Willging died in May 2011 following more than thirty five years of extensive experience in health care management as a practitioner, teacher and policy maker.  He was dedicated to assuring that the nation’s health care delivery system and its workforce would be fully prepared and well-positioned to meet those changing needs.

He brought this commitment to bear while holding the positions of President and CEO of the American Health Care Association, the Assisted Living Federation of America after serving as an officer with BlueCross/Blue Shield of Greater New York. His understanding of the special needs of older adults was grounded in the senior positions he held in the Health Care Financing Administration (now CMS, the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services) where he oversaw both the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

His career continued with faculty assignments to The John Hopkins Center on Health and Aging, and the University’s School of Medicine.  At the community level, he was an active member of the Howard County Commission on Aging and contributed leadership to the Aging in Place Advisory Committee of the Howard County Office on Aging and the Partners Group co-directed by the Office on Aging and the Horizon Foundation.

The Paul R. Willging Endowment is managed by Howard Community College.