WMU Medical School celebrates completed renovations

Kathy Jennings | Thursday, October 3, 2013

In a ceremony full of symbols, Western Michigan University School of Medicine celebrated the official "Topping Out" ceremony -- an event that occurs when the last piece of steel is raised into place.

An evergreen tree, the United States flag, and the medical school banner all were attached to the beam at it ascended to the top of the 350,000-square-foot new medical school building renovation.

"The evergreen is a symbol of good luck for the future building occupants," says founding sean Hal B. Jenson. "We will plant this tree in the future landscape on the campus. The U.S. flag symbolizes our commitment to the American dream, which as an educational institution we believe can be achieved through a commitment to lifelong learning."

An auditorium, lecture halls, a simulation center, classrooms that vary in seating capacity, state-of the-art laboratories, study rooms and conference room space, and offices for leadership and support staff for the medical school all are part of the $68 million renovation. Work on the project started a year ago and is scheduled to be finished by June 1014.

The addition to the building is being made to the existing 320,000-square-foot building donated to WMU for the new medical school by William U. Parfet, Chairman and CEO of MPI Research in Mattawan in December 2011.

Jenson says the new medical school began accepting applications from students in August and 3,000 already have come in. The first class will have 50 students. The faculty also is being assembled and 80 have accepted positions in the new school.

"Later this month many more physicians, other healthcare providers, and community members will begin the process for medical school faculty appointment to participate in teaching the next generation of physicians," Jenson says. "We continue to finalize the medical school curriculum that uses contemporary technologies, simulation training, and instructional strategies focused on problem solving in a team-oriented interprofessional learning environment. Our graduates will be prepared to excel in any chosen specialty."

In March 2011, WMU received a gift of $100 million for the medical school from anonymous donors. The med school has been in the planning stages since 2008 and is a collaboration between Kalamazoo’s two teaching hospitals, Borgess Health and Bronson Healthcare.

Writer: Kathy Jennings, Second Wave Media
Source: Laura Eller, WMU School of Medicine