Financier Bill Conway announced in 2011 that he would give away $1 billion to a cause that he and his wife believed in and could create jobs for the poor. He asked the public to share ideas with him and the idea that stuck the best with them was to help potential students get nursing degrees so that our nation has enough medical professionals to care for everyone.
No other donor has ever dedicated as much money as Bill and Joanne Conway have to a wide range of nursing programs.
So far, he has donated $325.6 million to support student aid, new buildings, efforts to recruit and retain faculty, and more at 22 nursing schools in the Mid-Atlantic regions. He has also supported a pediatric nursing program at Children’s National Hospital in D.C.
Over the past ten years, their donations have produced more than 7000 nurses.
“I expect that of most of the money I leave to charity will go to continuing this mission,” says Conway, whose net worth Forbes estimates at $4 billion. “I see that we’re starting to make a difference in some places, and I’d like to make more of a difference over time.”