Upstate Medical University receives $1.54 million bequest from alumnus

SYRACUSE — Upstate Medical University has received a $1.54 million gift from the estate of alumnus Stanley A. August, M.D., of Brooklyn, that will help establish an endowed professorship in pediatrics and scholarships for students in Upstate’s College of Medicine.

August earned his medical degree from Upstate in 1969 and became a board-certified pediatrician. Ten years later, he enrolled in Brooklyn Law School and became a lawyer to better understand the relationship of law to the medical profession. August was in private practice in Brooklyn for nearly four decades, earning a reputation as an excellent diagnostician, Upstate says.

The gift comes in the form of a bequest through Upstate’s Medical Alumni Foundation. August died Aug. 14, 2011.

“We are grateful for the living legacy Dr. August has created that will ultimately improve the health of children in this region and support the next generation of physicians in New York,” Upstate Medical University President David R. Smith, M.D. said in a news release. “His generosity is a testament to the support of our alumni.”

The contribution will be used to establish the Stanley A. August, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Pediatrics, and two scholarships: The Nathan and Ada August Memorial Award and the Stanley A. August, M.D., Memorial Award. Details of the professorship and scholarships are still to be worked out, Upstate says.

Thomas Welch, M.D., professor and chair of the Department of Pediatrics and medical director of Upstate Golisano Children’s Hospital, said the gift from August, while supporting Upstate clinical education mission, represents the final contribution to the Children’s Hospital capital campaign.

Contact Carbonaro at mcarbonaro@cnybj.com