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 Ģ������ƵStories      October 10, 2025

By Bill Studenc

Ģ������Ƶ’s new master’s degree program focusing on increasing the availability of health care in the rural Southern Appalachian Mountains is receiving a financial boost from the director of the school in which the program is housed.

Terry Durbin, associate professor and director of the School of Nursing in WCU’s College of Health and Human Sciences, and husband Steve have made a $25,000 commitment to create the Durbin Endowed Scholarship for Rural Health.

Announcement of their gift comes during an annual campaign to encourage Ģ������Ƶfaculty and staff members to make financial contributions to the institution where they work. This year’s faculty-staff giving initiative, which kicked off Sept. 8, will continue through Friday, Oct. 24.

The Durbin Endowment will provide scholarship support to students in WCU’s recently announced Master’s Entry Program in Nursing (MEPN), which is designed to prepare graduates with a strong foundation in nursing practice and leadership while helping solve a critical need for nurses across Western North Carolina and adjacent areas in Georgia and Tennessee.

Scheduled to begin in January, the program will provide a nontraditional pathway for individuals who hold bachelor’s degrees in other disciplines to enter the nursing profession at the graduate level. The program features a rigorous curriculum that incorporates clinical preparation, leadership development and rural health perspectives.

The launch of the new master’s-entry nursing program with a focus on rural health care marks a significant step toward addressing critical health disparities in underserved areas and introduces new nurses to the workforce, said Lori Anderson, dean of the College of Health and Human Sciences.

“At the core of this effort are the generous donors whose financial support will help students achieve their dreams and goals,” Anderson said. “The generosity and investment made by Terri and Steve Durbin through establishing this scholarship have a tangible ripple effect, beginning today and transforming the lives of students passionate about rural health. This will shape the future of health professionals and health care in the region.”

A member of the Ģ������Ƶfaculty since August 2021, Terri Durbin is a certified registered nurse anesthetist, nurse educator and cultural studies scholar whose career has focused on reducing health disparities, promoting culturally responsive education and strengthening the rural health workforce across Appalachia.

Her decision to create an endowed scholarship fund for students in the new master’s degree program stems from her own experiences working toward her master’s and doctoral degrees at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

“I know firsthand how difficult graduate education can be, both in terms of workload and finances,” she said. “When we launched the new master’s entry program, it was clear to me that students would benefit from having some financial relief as they step into a very demanding professional pathway. Endowing a scholarship felt like a way to invest directly in their success.”

In addition to her role as a faculty member and administrator in the School of Nursing, Durbin said that she felt compelled to contribute financially to the new program and support its focus on rural health.

“The program is designed to prepare graduate-entry nurses who can thrive in the rural and regional health systems that are the backbone of Western North Carolina. We aim to prepare graduates who understand rural issues and possess the skills to enhance health in rural communities. By focusing the scholarship here, we’re aligning student support with the real workforce needs of our area,” she said.

“Communities across our region often face shortages of health care providers, particularly nurses. Increasing the number of well-prepared, practice-ready nurses means more patients can access care closer to home. It also strengthens rural hospitals and clinics, which depend on a steady pipeline of qualified professionals to remain viable,” she said.

Durbin is one of two volunteers in the College of Health and Human Sciences serving as “Giving Champions” encouraging colleagues to give back to Ģ������Ƶduring the 2025 Faculty-Staff Giving Challenge. She said that she believes the involvement of university employees in philanthropic support for the institution is vital.

“Participation itself sends a message. When faculty and staff contribute, even with small donations, it shows our students and our broader community that we believe in what we are building together. Collective giving demonstrates commitment and helps strengthen the case for outside donors to invest as well,” she said.

“I see giving not as an obligation, but as an opportunity to amplify the work we already do. Small gifts – combined – can open doors for students in ways our individual efforts can’t. We can pool our support to create something lasting,” Durbin said.

For husband Steve Durbin, race director and owner of Durbin Race Management, which organizes ultramarathons and other long-distance events, it was an easy decision to join his wife in providing financial support to the university where she works.

“I’ve seen how much Terri and her colleagues invest in their students, and I wanted to support that mission. Together, we try to create opportunities – whether through running events that boost local communities or through scholarships that ease the way for students,” he said.

“I hope future recipients of this scholarship will not only succeed academically but will also find themselves rooted in this region, serving the communities that supported their education. The goal is to create a ripple effect. One student supported today means numerous patients cared for tomorrow,” he said.

Recipients of scholarships made possible by the Durbin Endowment must be enrolled in WCU’s Master’s Entry Program in Nursing, with preference given to students residing in the rural Appalachian region in the following counties of North Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee:

• North Carolina: Avery, Buncombe, Cherokee, Graham, Clay, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell, Polk, Rutherford, Swain, Transylvania, Watauga and Yancey counties.
• Georgia: Franklin, Habersham, Rabun, Stephens and Towns counties.
• Tennessee: Blount, Cocke, Monroe, Polk and Sevier counties.

“I see this scholarship as one piece of a larger picture – supporting students, sustaining the nursing workforce and building healthier communities across our region,” Terri Durbin said. “I would encourage others to think about giving not just as a financial act, but as a way of shaping the future we want for our students and neighbors.”

Establishment of the Durbin Endowed Scholarship for Rural Health comes as Ģ������Ƶis in the midst of the public phase of its “Fill the Western Sky” comprehensive fundraising campaign, an effort to raise a minimum of $100 million for the university’s academic, student engagement and athletics programs. For more information or to make a contribution to the campaign, visit , call 828-227-7124 or email advancement@wcu.edu.