University of the Incarnate Word Announces Recipient of Inaugural Dr. William “Bill” Gonzaba Endowed Scholarship

The University of the Incarnate Word and the Gonzaba Medical Group are proud to announce the recipient of the inaugural 2021-2022 Gonzaba scholarship. Rosalinda Sanchez Moncada of San Antonio will receive a scholarship toward her Master of Health Administration (MHA) degree at UIW.

In August 2020, the Gonzaba Medical Group established the Dr. William “Bill” Gonzaba Endowed Scholarship for Healthcare Leadership and Innovation in Health Administration for students pursuing their Master of Health Administration degree at UIW. The hope is that this endowment will continue to grow over the years with contributions from those who know and love Dr. Gonzaba and the legacy he has built.

Sanchez’s essay addressed the financial challenges placed on her parents while she pursued a college education in Mexico, how the degree reflected more than job opportunities but also the ability to return her parents’ dedication by supporting them as needed. She had not envisioned herself continuing onto graduate school, but her interest in the healthcare field continued to grow. She hopes to set an example for her children to see the value in pursuing a college degree. She also discussed the need for innovation in healthcare, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, where there is a need to ensure access to safe care for patients who are immunocompromised or have other conditions that have placed them at higher risk should they contract COVID-19.

The Gonzaba Medical Group has supported the MHA degree at UIW serving as an internship location for MHA students and participating in the MHA Program’s Executive Advisory Board. Dr. Gonzaba’s generous endowment of $50,000 will serve to ease the financial burden of future students while promoting growth of minority representation within the health administration field. The Dr. William “Bill” Gonzaba Scholarship is to be awarded to an incoming MHA student whose is a minority and first-generation graduate student with at least a 3.5 cumulative undergraduate GPA and has a demonstrated financial need.  Nine of the 25 incoming MHA students (Class of 2023) submitted scholarship applications along with an essay where they addressed the following topics:

• What it means to be the first in your family to attend graduate school and how you envision your future being different from that of your parents because of the education you are pursuing.

• Discuss one area of healthcare in which you believe innovation is needed to improve patientcare or access to care.

As the Founder and CEO of Gonzaba Medical Group, Dr. Bill Gonzaba has demonstrated leadership and innovation within his own practice, which he started more than 60 years ago. He implemented an innovative healthcare model that positively changed the quality of and access to medical care. Today, this model is nationally known as a full-risk healthcare model where the patient always comes first, and provider organizations are fully accountable for the health outcomes of their patients. Dr. Gonzaba’s original one-room office on South Flores has since grown into one of the largest senior primary care and specialty care medical groups in San Antonio. With three comprehensive medical centers and four neighborhood clinics, Gonzaba Medical Group employs more than 700 employees that share a passion for improving the lives of San Antonio residents and seniors. Gonzaba Medical Group has earned the Gold Seal from The Joint Commission – the most prestigious independent evaluator in the nation, and Gonzaba is among the highest-ranked by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).

Contributions to this endowment can be made by clicking “Make Your Gift” on UIW's giving web page , select “other” and enter Gonzaba Endowment. For information regarding the endowment, contact Chris Nesser, PhD, Director, UIW Graduate Program in Health Administration at (210) 832-5626 or decima.nesser@uiwtx.edu.