Four-story Health and Human Services Building to be completed by spring 2022 for health-related fields
Abby Epstein – News Writer
A $74 million building fully funded by the state of Connecticut has officially broke ground. The Health and Human Services building is projected to be completed by spring of 2022.
“This will be a state of an art facility that will provide greatly enhanced research and experiential learning opportunities for our students and faculty in the health-related fields,” said President Joe Bertolino.
The building will be four stories high. It will contain the communications disorders, health and movement sciences, nursing, public health and recreation, tourism and sports management departments.
The first floor will contain the human performance labs and a center for adaptive sports and inclusive recreation. The second floor will house the communications disorder clinics. The third floor is will be a space for interprofessional collaboration and the fourth floor will contain a showcase facility for the nursing program.
Student nursing major Melquicedex Hernandez, a sophomore, will be one of the first students to use the facility and equipment in the new Health and Human Services building.
“Some of the highlights of the nursing floor will have a state-of-the-art simulation center, a home simulation department, four standardized patient rooms, and four large teaching labs,” said Hernandez. “There is no doubt this building will be a beautiful addition to this campus.”
Many students whose majors are moving into the new building said they are excited to see what opportunities are waiting for them.
“When I found out about the construction of the health and human services building, I was very excited to what Southern students with majors in the health and service field would have in the near future,” said Hernandez.
Everyone who talked at the groundbreaking ceremony said the Health and Human Services building will give students many opportunities in their learning.
“We are taking these important steps to build our legacy of excellence, expanding opportunities for students to obtain an outstanding and affordable education in the field of health, health care and human services,” said Dean of Health and Human Services Sandra Bulmer.
The Health and Human Services building is also about the community.
“I think that this new building will serve the wonderful resource for the off-campus community through our expanding speech therapy and hearing clinics, human performance labs, and our center for adaptive sports and inclusion recreation,” said Bertolino.
The speakers at the ceremony all said the Health and Human Services building will be beneficial for many students, but will be more than a place for students to just come and learn.
“This building is not just a building. It is a symbol of something greater. It is a symbol of who we are as an institution and what we hope to give back to this community,” said Bertolino.
The Health and Human Services building, as all the speakers said, is for the students.
“It’s a place,” said President of Connecticut Board of Regents for Higher Education Mark Ojakian, “where they feel valued, cared for, and that the members of our community, in particular, our students know that they matter.”
Photo Credit: Izzy Manzo
