After more than 100 years in operation, the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s College of Nursing has moved to a home of its own.
As part of the $70 million renovation of the Historic Quadrangle on the UTHSC Memphis campus, the College of Nursing has a dedicated building for faculty, students, and staff, for the first time in its history. The five-floor building in the heart of campus is a renovation of the Crowe Building, originally constructed in 1928. The building was used as research space, before closing in 2016.
“As we transition back to more in-person meetings and classes for fall, the move to our new building will add to the excitement of being together again under one roof,” said UTHSC College of Nursing Dean Wendy Likes, PhD, DNSc, APRN-Bc, FAANP. “I look forward to seeing the members of the college – students, faculty, and staff – together again in this beautiful new setting.”
UTHSC Chancellor Steve J. Schwab, MD, announced in February that the university is planning to move to a format that includes more on-campus preclinical courses for students in the fall. In anticipation of the move back to campus, College of Nursing faculty and staff are unpacking boxes and setting up their offices in the new building.
When students return to campus, they will be able to relax or study between classes in the new building in the Dr. Cheryl Cummings Stegbauer Student Lounge or in the W.I. and Emma Lee Greenhill Quiet Room. The building also offers the Dr. Margaret A. Newman Dialogue Center, named for an alumna and faculty member who was an international leader in nursing theory.
Tracing its history back to 1898 and the establishment of the Memphis City Hospital Training School for Nurses, the College of Nursing was the first school of nursing in Tennessee. Its first superintendent was Lena A. Warner, who was also the first graduate nurse in Tennessee. The new building will have an area devoted to history and memorabilia related to the college.
Mona Wicks, PhD, RN, FAAN, is chair of the Department of Health Promotion and Disease Prevention, and has been on the faculty of the College of Nursing since 1987.
“I am so excited about the aesthetics of the building. It is a beautiful environment in which to work with my colleagues,” Dr. Wicks said. “I especially love the windows, and look forward to looking out over Union Avenue into the horizon to clear my head as I work. If I can’t work outside, the next best thing is to see it.”
Comprising 53,390 square feet and 82 offices, the building also offers additional space for research students and ample space for faculty research offices.
“I am looking forward to enjoying the well-equipped research suites and conference rooms, which will allow faculty, staff, and students the space and technology to collaborate with other investigators near and far,” said Associate Dean of Research Ansley Stanfill, PhD, RN FAAN.