UC to Bestow Highest Honor to College of Nursing Supporter

Jean Wedbush, a longtime supporter of nursing education at the University of Cincinnati, will be awarded the University of Cincinnati’s highest award, an honorary doctorate, during the university’s

spring Commencement ceremonies

.  

Wedbush will receive an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at the ceremony set for 3 p.m., Friday, April 29, in Fifth Third Arena.   

After earning her nursing degree in 1955 from Monmouth Memorial Hospital in New Jersey, Wedbush began her career at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she specialized in pediatrics and internal medicine before moving into an occupational health role in the semiconductor industry.  

In 1960, she married Ed Wedbush, a longtime member of UC’s foundation board and a College of Engineering alumnus who founded Wedbush Securities, now one of the nation’s largest securities firms and investment banks.

Wedbush enthusiastically joined her husband in supporting his alma mater, adding a focus on promoting the advancement of the nursing profession. The couple have been instrumental in providing scholarship opportunities to nursing students, as well as making possible the purchase of robotics to advance programs using telehealth technology.  

The couple provided a $200,000 donation that allowed UC’s College of Nursing to renovate a space on the third floor into an area to display nursing memorabilia, as well as a place for students to study. The

Wedbush Nursing Legacy Center

, which opened in 2007, not only spotlights the evolution of nursing as a career, but also shares the rich history of the college, which in 1916 became the first to offer a baccalaureate in nursing.

In recognition of her contributions, the college named Wedbush an honorary alumna in 2008.  

In 2013, the Wedbush’s launched WEDBUSHCares, a corporate giving program of Wedbush Securities focused on raising awareness and providing charitable donations to nonprofit organizations specializing in natural disaster recovery, health and wellness causes and other activities that positively affect quality of life in communities.   

Jean and Ed Wedbush live in Rancho Santa Fe, California. The couple have three children and 10 grandchildren.