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RESEARCH
The Monday after December graduation ceremonies, construction
work began on a new addition to and a major renovation of the
Annie Richardson Bass Building. The new space is designed to meet
the instructional space needs of nursing, nurse anesthesia, social
work and nutrition students in an environment that will foster
collaboration and community.
Key features of the new space include active learning classrooms, a
Health Professions Learning Center, and additional faculty offices,
administrative suites and student amenity areas. A three-story atrium
will connect the old and new spaces. The technology-rich Health
Professions Learning Center will include a variety of simulation and
skills labs and simulated patient suites, including an operating room,
several acute care focused rooms, a four-room primary care clinic, a
residential care room and public health rooms.
The more than 35,000-square-foot addition, a 70 percent increase in
space, is located on the north side of the current building. The new
major entrance to the Bass Building will be on the north side, with
additional entrances on the east and west of the building.
The new addition and the renovated first and second floors of the
current building will open fall 2014. The third floor renovation will
be complete by December 2014. A grand celebration opening is
planned for January 2015. Alumni, faculty, staff, students, friends and
colleagues are invited to celebrate our new space.
Nancy Mitchell Ogrod ’72, chair of Harris College Board of Visitors,
remembers the excitement she and her fellow seniors felt as they
began the fall semester in 1971 in the new Annie Richardson Bass
Building. “For the past year we had watched the construction of
the building that would be home for Harris College of Nursing,
looking forward to a central location for classes and labs. We were
not disappointed!”
Ogrod said, “It is with that same sense of excitement that I’m
watching the expansion of the Bass Building today. TCU’s tradition
of training leaders for the future will be enhanced by the addition
of classroom space, offices for faculty, study areas for students and
the technological advances that will be incorporated into the new
facility. I know I will not be disappointed when the expansion opens
in 2014.”
A banner at the construction site states, “We are breaking ground for
the groundbreakers of tomorrow.”Dean Paulette Burns said, “Indeed,
our students are why we must continue to transform our space, our
pedagogies and our opportunities. The new building creates spaces
for students to learn, practice, research, engage with others and
create their future.”
Opportunities for Donor Participation
The $27 million in funds approved for this project by TCU will create
new space, but there are still many opportunities for generous
support from donors. Equipping learning spaces such as The Health
Professions Learning Center creates a need for state-of-the-art
software and equipment for all levels of simulation. New research
space provides opportunities for undergraduate and graduate
students and faculty to collaborate on research studies to advance
new discoveries, which requires funding.
Various programs in the new building need to be funded through
support not identified in the “bricks and mortar” appropriation, such
as the Oncology Education and Research Center and the Center
for Evidence Based Practice. In addition, with projected continued
growth in academic and researchprograms, Harris College anticipates
adding new faculty positions over the next several years.
If you are interested in supporting Harris College’s growth and
transformation to have an impact on the future of health care, please
contact DeVonna Tinney, director of development, Harris College of
Nursing & Health Sciences, at d.tinney@tcu.edu or 817.257.5032.
BUILDING
FOR
THE FUTURE
Photos by Aerial Photography, Inc., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
F ATU ES: COVER STORY
Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences ·
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