Thanks to the generosity of two of the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s biggest supporters, Ruth and Bill Scott, a student plaza, ice rink and an architectural/artistic feature will be added to the heart of the UNMC campus.
The plaza will be constructed as part of a greenway on the east side of the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education, which sits at the northeast corner of the 42nd and Emile Street intersection.
It will serve as a central outdoor area for student and campus activities during warmer months and will convert into a mechanically frozen ice rink during the winter months. The plaza will help to enhance campus life and develop a clear sense of academic place by creating a common space to be shared by the colleges of nursing, pharmacy, medicine, and public health as well as the School of Allied Health Professions, said UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. The space also will link to the UNMC Student Life Center.
“For years I have envisioned having a plaza and skating rink where students and employees can enjoy our campus atmosphere,” Dr. Maurer said. “Thanks to Ruth and Bill Scott, it is going to become a reality. I think it will be one of the most exciting projects ever on the UNMC campus. With all the buildings we have on our campus, it will give us the green space and college campus ‘feel’ that we have sorely needed.”
The architectural/artistic feature, which will be similar in concept to the Henningson Memorial Campanile at the University of Nebraska at Omaha and other sculptural features at the university’s other campuses, will be located on the east end of the campus greenway. Preliminary plans call for the feature to have a health care theme.
This latest project marks the fifth major gift the Scotts have made to the medical center in the past five years.
In 2003, their contribution to the Durham Research Center established the Ruth and Bill Scott Neuroscience Research Laboratories located on the third floor.
In 2006, they supported construction of the Sorrell Center by making the lead gift to the University of Nebraska Foundation. The Sorrell Center, which will serve as home to the UNMC College of Medicine, will be completed this summer, and students will start attending class in the building this fall.
The Scotts also made a second major gift in 2006 to honor a legendary UNMC internist, Fred Paustian, M.D., and his wife, Mary Ann “Maisie.” The gift named the two primary amphitheaters in the Sorrell Center after the Paustians. In addition, one-half of a floor in the second research tower currently under construction at UNMC will be named the Frederick F. Paustian, M.D., Gastroenterology Research Laboratories. The second research tower is expected to be completed in January 2009.
In 2007, the Scotts established the Nebraska Arthritis Outcomes Research Center located on the third floor of Poynter Hall. The center conducts a variety of studies designed to provide a better understanding of arthritis by analyzing the many determinants used to predict outcomes for arthritis sufferers.
Bill Scott is a former vice president of Berkshire Hathaway. Ruth Scott is a bridge instructor and founder of the Omaha Bridge Studio.
The student plaza, ice rink and greenway extension will be designed by HDR Architecture, Inc., one of the architects for the Sorrell Center. A designer for the proposed campus identification monument will be chosen by conducting a national competition.
“This new plaza will provide a beautiful space for our students to gather on campus. It will truly enhance the student experience on our campus,” said Don Leuenberger, UNMC’s vice chancellor for business and finance.
“The student plaza is the signature piece in bringing together the academic campus at UNMC,” said John Niemann, Ed.D., senior vice president for the University of Nebraska Foundation. “All the various UNMC colleges in Omaha will be located on the plaza. It will create a positive and collegial environment that will be shared by faculty and students all 12 months of the year.”
Medical student Curtis McKnight, president of the UNMC Student Senate, thanked the Scotts and UNMC officials for creating a special place on campus for students.
“The student plaza will add some much needed green space and compose the heart of the academic campus,” McKnight said. “I have to agree with all the students I’ve talked with in saying we couldn’t be more excited about the project.”
UNMC is the only public health science center in the state. Its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through their commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC and its hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, have established themselves as one of the country’s leading centers in cancer, transplantation biology, bioterrorism preparedness, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, genetics, biomedical technology and ophthalmology. UNMC’s research funding from external sources now exceeds $80 million annually and has resulted in the creation of more than 2,400 highly skilled jobs in the state. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes 513 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties who practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.