Dr. Robert Balster, IPAS founder, funds scholarship in support of IPAS students
Date Released: 27 April 2024Toward the end of a distinguished 40-year research career in the study of addictive drugs and their effects, Bob Balster, Butler Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology at VCU, felt a need to do more to get the word out about importance of increasing global knowledge about the nature of addiction and its consequences. Along with colleagues at King's College London and the University of Adelaide, Australia, he created the curriculum for the innovated MS in Addiction Studies Program known as the International Programme in Addiction Studies, or IPAS. Now in its 16th year, this program, offered jointly by the three founding universities online, has graduated more than 160 students from 30 different countries around the globe.
Even with the success of IPAS, however, Balster recognized that many students, and especially those from low and middle income countries (LMIC) have been unable to benefit from the program because of its cost relative to their earnings. Recognizing the importance of reaching such students, Dr. Balster chose to endow an annual scholarship to support qualified applicants who might otherwise be unable to afford attendance to participate in the IPAS program.
Once fully funded, the Robert L. Balster scholarship will provide $15,000 every year for IPAS tuition. Based on a $400,000 gift to the MCV Foundation, Dr. Balster noted "Over time, it has become increasingly obvious to me that this is the right thing to do with the resources I've accumulated over the years."
Dr. Balster's generosity was recently recognized in the MCV Foundation's Spring 2024 Chronicle of Giving. For more information about this generous gift, see pages 20-21.
Last Modified: 25 August 2024, 14:08 PM, by: Mary Loos
