October 21, 2014

TTUHSC Names Department of Internal Medicine to Honor J.T. & Margaret Talkington

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center announced a gift from the J.T. & Margaret Talkington Charitable Foundation that will create six new endowed faculty chairs in internal medicine at the university.

In recognition of the gift, the department will be named the J.T. & Margaret Talkington Department of Internal Medicine.

It is the first named department at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and highlights the special connection between Margaret Talkington and Dr. Cynthia Jumper, chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine.

“When Mrs. Talkington became ill, Dr. Jumper was her physician,” said Dr. Steven L. Berk, executive vice president provost and dean of the School of Medicine for Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. “So they got to know each other very well, and I think Mrs. Talkington got to know about the Department of [Internal] Medicine and the potential it had for taking care of patents.”

Endowed faculty chairs provide funds to recruit and support the research activities of leading scholars. The gifts are invested for the long-term benefit of the university, and only part of the interest earnings may be spent each year. Over time, this enables the endowment to grow.