Future physicians will train at the Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex on campus
KEARNEY – Nebraska native William Northwall, M.D., has created a full cost-of-attendance scholarship for a Nebraska student who studies medicine at the Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex at the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
Dr. Northwall, a former Kearney radiologist, pledged the gift through the University of Nebraska Foundation. The William H. Northwall, MD, Scholarship will be awarded to a deserving student from greater Nebraska. The scholarship will cover the student’s full cost of medical school attendance at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The current cost is approximately $65,000 a year, including tuition, books, fees and living expenses.
He said he established the scholarship because he believes the Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex is important to rural Nebraska’s future.
“I believe in the future of the Kearney medical community and its tradition of excellence, and this scholarship is me paying it forward,” said Dr. Northwall, a 1967 graduate of the UNMC College of Medicine and University of Nebraska Foundation Trustee.
He and his wife, Ethel Merrigan, live in St. Petersburg, Florida.
The Douglas A. Kristensen Rural Health Education Complex addresses a critical need for additional health care professionals in rural communities by allowing more students to study and train in central Nebraska. Through a UNK-UNMC partnership, UNMC will, for the first time, educate physicians, pharmacists and public health professionals in rural Nebraska as well as expand the current nursing and allied health professions programs offered on the UNK campus.
The first medical school students will begin classes on the UNK campus in fall 2026 after the completion of a second building in the Rural Health Education Complex. Dr. Northwall’s scholarship will be awarded to a student in the inaugural medical school class in Kearney.
“On behalf of the UNMC College of Medicine, I extend my sincere gratitude to Dr. Northwall for his remarkable generosity in establishing the first full cost-of-attendance scholarship for a student attending our new medical campus in Kearney, Nebraska,” said Bradley Britigan, M.D., dean of the College of Medicine. “This pioneering gift sets a transformative precedent, ensuring that a future physician can pursue their education without financial barriers. Dr. Northwall’s commitment not only honors our students but also strengthens the future of health care in our state. We are deeply thankful for his visionary support.”
Dr. Northwall said he hopes the scholarship will assist future physicians while also inspiring other donors to support a new generation of 21st century health care professionals. He said many students graduate deeply in debt, and he wants the profession to continue to attract the best and the brightest. The average medical school student graduates from UNMC with $185,000-$200,000 in debt.
“We need both more and better doctors going forward,” he said. “The feeling from helping people who are in medical need is a wonderful reward.”
Dr. Northwall practiced radiology from 1972 to 1998 at CHI Health Good Samaritan in Kearney. He remains devoted to UNMC and its mission and previously made a gift to create the William H. Northwall, MD, Plaza, which serves as the entryway to the Wigton Heritage Center on the UNMC campus in Omaha.
Dr. Northwall’s scholarship gift was made as part of Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future. The campaign is a historic effort to engage 150,000 benefactors to give $3 billion to support University of Nebraska students, faculty, academic and clinical programs and research to address the needs of the state. Scholarships are a top priority of the campaign.
