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Sound bites Audio: UNMC’s Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., thanks the Scotts. Audio: Tim Pontti, UNMC College of Nursing student, thanks the Scotts for the opportunities for new students. Audio: Adrianne Wemmert, UNMC College of Public Health student, thanks the Scotts for giving the College of Public Health a home. Video clips Video: UNMC’s Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., explains the importance of an academic campus. Video: Tim Pontti, UNMC College of Nursing student, talks about what the Scotts’ gift will mean for the nursing students. Video: Adrianne Wemmert, UNMC College of Public Health student, says the Scotts’ gift will give the College of Public Health a home. |
The UNMC beat goes on.
Thanks in large measure to the leadership of Omahans Ruth and Bill Scott.
The Scotts, who have made five previous major donations to UNMC, are at it again. This time, they are making a gift that will provide the foundation for UNMC to add two new buildings – a College of Public Health and an addition to the College of Nursing – while also completing the establishment of UNMC’s academic campus.
The College of Public Health building will be south of Dewey Avenue on the east side of 40th Street in what is presently a UNMC parking lot. The College of Nursing addition will be constructed to the east of the existing College of Nursing building at 42nd Street and Dewey Avenue.
Just last month, the Scotts provided funding for construction of a four-season student plaza, including an ice rink and architectural/artistic feature as the centerpiece for the UNMC academic campus.
“It’s difficult to find the right words to express our profound appreciation to the Scotts,” said Harold M. Maurer, M.D., UNMC chancellor. “We are humbled by their generosity. It is truly a gift that will transform the UNMC campus and continue our momentum as we confidently pursue our goal of becoming a world-class academic health science center.”
Dr. Maurer said the latest gift puts the finishing touches on a five-year project directed at pulling all UNMC’s academic programs together in one common area bounded by 40th Street on the east, Emile Street on the south, 42nd Street on the west, and Dewey Avenue on the north. Prior to this, UNMC’s academic programs were scattered around campus.
The first piece of the academic campus puzzle was the construction of the Michael F. Sorrell Center for Health Science Education on the northeast corner of 42nd and Emile streets. The Sorrell Center, which will be home to the UNMC College of Medicine, is scheduled to be completed this summer and will be open for classes for the 2008-09 school year.
The Scotts made the lead gift on the Sorrell Center, and, instead of putting their name on the building, opted to name it in honor of their longtime friend — Dr. Mike Sorrell, a distinguished UNMC physician and honored graduate of the College of Medicine.
“The student plaza will be surrounded by the four colleges on the UNMC Omaha campus – medicine, nursing, pharmacy and public health as well as the School of Allied Health Professions,” Dr. Maurer said. “For the first time ever, UNMC will have the look and feel of a traditional college campus. It is going to be spectacular, and much of the thanks must go to Ruth and Bill Scott.”
John Niemann, Ed.D., senior vice president of the University of Nebraska Foundation, praised the Scotts for their philanthropy. “Ruth and Bill are special people,” he said. “They don’t seek recognition but both are genuinely motivated to improve the health and well-being of all Nebraskans. They much prefer being in the background. They make gifts with warm hearts and no strings attached. Their only goal is to do what is best for Nebraskans and UNMC.”
Construction of the student plaza will begin this spring. It will be completed in phases over the next two years. When completed, 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 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 student plaza. Preliminary plans call for the feature to have a health care theme. Its anticipated completion date is the summer of 2010.
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.