Philanthropy Nursing Simulation Lab Named for Donors John and Dorothy Masternick The Masternick Family has a long history of supporting YSU and its nursing program, and the university recognized that generosity this spring by dedicating an innovative and highly technical hands-on nursing simulation laboratory in the family’s honor. The John and Dorothy Masternick Nursing Simulation Laboratory, located on the third floor of Cushwa Hall, was made possible by the Masternicks’ substantial gift to YSU’s Department of Nursing. Computerized manikins are featured in the lab, with programmable vital signs – heart rate and rhythm, respiration and blood pressure, coughing and respiratory distress – to offer nursing students a lifelike patient care experience. The largest and most advanced manikin is a high-fidelity adult version that nursing students have named “Windsor” in honor of the Masternicks’ business, Windsor House Inc. “This is the most advanced teaching manikin in Northeast Ohio,’’ said John J. Masternick, the couple’s son. “I really didn’t realize what a great teaching tool it would be. It is so gratifying to be able to give a gift like that to YSU.” The laboratory also includes classroom and seminar space, equipped with the latest in electronic media, and a row of medical exam tables where students can practice their patient assessment skills The late John Masternick, an attorney and a 1954 graduate of the Youngstown College of Law, founded Windsor House Inc. with his wife, Dorothy, in 1959. Their family-owned business now operates 11 skilled care facilities and four assisted living communities across Northeast Ohio and Northwest Pennsylvania that employ more than 1,500 people. “My father was a product of a poor but loving family,” said John J. Masternick, also an attorney and now president and chief executive officer of Windsor House Inc. “When my father was born, my grandfather vowed that my dad would go to college and become a lawyer. My grandfather died four years after my father was born, but my grandfather forged my father’s destiny. “If it wasn’t for Youngstown College making that happen and fulfilling my father’s destiny, my siblings and I wouldn’t be here,’’ he said. “The university has been a launching pad to our success, and that is very humbling.” The Masternicks are long-time supporters of YSU’s nursing program. In 2004 the family established an endowment for nursing students, and the John and Dorothy Masternick Foundation has made contributions to the university so far totaling more than $50,000.
Celebrating the dedication of the new John and Dorothy Masternick Nursing Simulation Laboratory are, from left, President Jim Tressel, Dorothy Masternick and her son, John J. Masternick.
Nursing students Joellin Chance, left, and Jamie Stellmar work with Windsor, a medical manikin in the new John and Dorothy Masternick Nursing Simulation Laboratory.
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