IRENE HEINZ GIVEN and JOHN LaPORTE GIVEN, married in 1899, provided generous support to medical institutions and universities nationwide. The Givens made their home in Vermont, and Mrs. Given–the daughter of Henry J. Heinz, founder of the H.J. Heinz Company–was active in civic life. In memory of their father and grandmother, Mrs. Given and her brothers established the Heinz Memorial Chapel at the University of Pittsburgh. Mr. Given, who had founded an advertising firm and was the author of Making a Newspaper, went on to join the Heinz Company as advertising counsel and a member of the board of directors. The Givens endowed professorships at several schools, including Mount Sinai School of Medicine, Harvard School of Public Health, and Middlebury College. Mrs. Given died in 1956, and Mr. Given in 1957.
Given Foundation Professorship in Pediatrics
School of Medicine
Pediatrics
Established in 1962 by the Irene Heinz Given and John LaPorte Given Foundation
Held by Brenda Banwell
BRENDA BANWELL, M.D., is the director of the Department of Pediatrics, as well as pediatrician–in–chief and co–director of Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. Dr. Banwell is a renowned expert in the research and treatment of pediatric multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neuroimmune disorders. She specializes in and studies the use of neuroimaging to assess the clinical and cognitive impact of the conditions, as well as the function of the immune system in children with these disorders. She also created a standardized clinical care algorithm and clinical database in order to evaluate the clinical impact of MS. Dr. Banwell earned her medical degree from the University of Western Ontario. She later completed a residency in pediatrics at the University of Western Ontario–Children’s Hospital of Western Ontario and a second residency in pediatric neurology at the University of Toronto – The Hospital for Sick Children. Her residencies were followed by a fellowship in neuromuscular research at Mayo Clinic.