William A. Shands Professorship in Medical History and Ethics

This fund was established in 2008 in memory of William A. Shands to support the research activities of a faculty member at the University of Florida Genetics Institute whose work is related to diseases of the eye. Shands earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1906 and a master’s degree in Law in 1928 from UF. After being elected a Florida Senator, he dedicated his efforts to enhance the Gainesville community by building a teaching hospital. Though initially he needed convincing that such a hospital in a small university community would be more beneficial than one in a metropolitan area, he began to diligently rally support for a teaching hospital in Gainesville rather than in cities like Tampa, Miami, and Jacksonville.