WILLOW HENRY NAMED INAUGURAL DR. ARTHUR M. PAPPAS PROFESSOR OF HEALTH CARE PRACTICE
Oct 28, 2021
Franklin Pierce University has named Willow Henry, P.T., D.P.T., as the inaugural Dr. Arthur M. Pappas Professor of Health Care Practice Endowed Chair. Dr. Henry is a wound-care expert and an assistant professor in the College of Health & Natural Sciences, teaching within the Doctor of Physical Therapy (D.P.T.) program at the University’s Manchester, N.H., Academic Center. The first named professorship in Franklin Pierce’s history, the endowed chair is funded by the generous support of the Arthur M. and Martha R. Pappas Foundation and continues the family’s legacy of giving to the University.
“The Dr. Arthur M. Pappas Professor of Health Care Practice endowed chair will benefit the faculty, the students, the University, and the community,” said President Kim Mooney ’83. “I am thankful for the continued support of the Pappas Foundation and its partnership with Franklin Pierce as we seek to educate and train the next generation of health care professionals in New Hampshire, Arizona, and beyond.”
The creation of Franklin Pierce’s first endowed named professorship fulfills of one the milestone goals as outlined in the University’s strategic plan, Pierce@60. The endowment aims to enhance recruitment and retention of faculty members, giving them greater flexibility in pursing scholarly and teaching innovations, conference presentations, and research. Highlighting the University’s commitment to remaining dynamic and relevant, the professorship will rotate every two to four years among allied health faculty, offering a source of inspiration and forward-thinking innovation for multiple professors. In addition, the Dr. Arthur M. Pappas Professor of Health Care Practice will lead and host the bi-annual Dr. Arthur M. Pappas Symposium on seminal issues in inter-professional front-line caregiving and education.
“We are proud to support Franklin Pierce,” said Dr. Martha Pappas. “Through this professorship, the University will get the best every year of whatever the [health sciences] program requires. Our foundation’s mission is to give to nonprofits that bring communities together. What better way than through this professorship?”
Dr. Willow Henry has been a full-time assistant professor at Franklin Pierce University since May 2017 after joining as an adjunct professor in 2014. Dr. Henry is an American Board of Wound Management Certified Wound Specialist and her proposal application focused on the interprofessional management of wounds. She theorizes that wound-care management by a team of experts improves outcomes, decreases wound chronicity, and decreases healthcare costs. Dr. Henry’s research and expertise in wound care and infectious diseases was key as she led the University’s Manchester Academic Center’s reopening task force to ensure in-person instruction at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. A native of Vermont, Dr. Henry received her bachelor of science in physical therapy from the University of Vermont and her doctor of physical therapy from Des Moines University.
“The review committee was impressed with the relevance and importance of Dr. Henry’s research, her framing of her research question and project, and the impact that the endowed professorship will have on her research trajectory,” said Dr. Catherine Paden, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We look forward to learning more as Dr. Henry collaborates with colleagues, engaging in interdisciplinary research on wound-care, and culminating in her planned Interdisciplinary Wound Care Symposium in 2023.”
“I am proud to be the inaugural Dr. Arthur M. Pappas Professor of Health Care Practice,”
said Dr. Henry. “Thank you to Franklin Pierce University, the Pappas Foundation, and
particularly Dr. Martha Pappas, for supporting my research on wound-care management.
I look forward to leading the Interdisciplinary Wound Care Symposium and working with
my colleagues across nursing, physician assistant, and physical therapy programs.”
To learn more about Franklin Piece University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program,
please visit our program page.
