{"id":53643,"date":"2025-09-11T14:29:13","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T19:29:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/?p=53643"},"modified":"2025-10-09T09:17:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T14:17:20","slug":"tarleton-state-celebrates-grand-opening-of-health-professions-building","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/tarleton-state-celebrates-grand-opening-of-health-professions-building\/","title":{"rendered":"Tarleton State Celebrates Grand Opening of Health Professions Building"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

STEPHENVILLE, Texas \u2014 Centered around a commitment to answering the state\u2019s demands for access to healthcare in rural and underserved areas, Tarleton State University opened its new $80 million Health Professions Building this morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Full
A large crowd looks toward the stage during Tarleton State’s grand opening of its new Health Professions Building Thursday morning in Stephenville.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At 92,000 square feet, the best-in-class facility will provide specialized laboratory space, a dedicated research lab and classrooms to give students abundant opportunities for hands-on experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis state-of-the art Health Professions Building clearly showcases our commitment to transforming healthcare access for rural and underserved communities,\u201d said Tarleton State President Dr. James Hurley. \u201cThe hands-on learning that will take place in this facility will prepare our graduates to improve community outcomes and spearhead innovative solutions. We appreciate the support of our state legislators, The Texas A&M System Board of Regents and Chancellor Glenn Hegar as we establish Tarleton State as the educational epicenter for rural healthcare, not just in Texas, but for the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notably, specialty teaching labs for new academic programs in occupational therapy, physical therapy and physician\u2019s assistant studies will prepare students to enter the workforce with the skills needed to make a difference. A first-level divisible classroom space can function as three individual teaching spaces or accommodate a group of 160 in a single room. This is paired with dedicated study areas and interior and exterior community spaces to elevate the student experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Health Professions Building also features a new food and nutrition science lab and a 100-seat tiered lecture hall. Large windows throughout provide ample natural light to create a welcoming space for all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTarleton State\u2019s new Health Professions Building is more than bricks and glass \u2014 it\u2019s a promise to students and to rural Texas,\u201d said Chancellor Glenn Hegar. \u201cThis facility gives young men and women the tools to learn, serve and lead in communities that need them most. When our students succeed here, families across this region will see the difference in better access to healthcare and stronger local economies.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearly 50 million people live in rural areas across the United States \u2014 almost 20% of the nation\u2019s population. In many of these locations, access to physicians and specialists is limited, including in Stephenville, where the patient-physician ratio is 1,779 to 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe addition of this impressive new facility will provide students with cutting-edge learning spaces and have a direct correlation to improving the lives of rural Texans,\u201d said state Rep. Shelby Slawson (District 59). \u201cThis is a monumental day for Tarleton State on its path to being a leader in rural healthcare education, and the regional impact that follows will be transformative.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recently, Tarleton State announced the elevation of its College of Health Sciences to the Division of Health Sciences. As part of the strategic organizational structure, the School of Nursing, School of Kinesiology, and School of Health and Clinical Professions shifted to the new division, along with the proposed College of Osteopathic Medicine (applicant status \u2014 seeking accreditation).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new facility sits adjacent to the Nursing Building, with a skybridge connecting the two to provide seamless access while enhancing collaboration between the programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe members of the Board of Regents, the leaders of System and top officials at Tarleton State all recognize the importance of investing in rural healthcare education,\u201d said Texas A&M System Board of Regents Chairman Robert Albritton. \u201cThis facility will help train the next generation of healthcare professionals who will go where they\u2019re needed most. It\u2019s a proud day for Tarleton State, for Stephenville and for the entire Texas A&M System.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perkins & Will was the architect for the project and Vaughn Construction the contractor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Exterior
The exterior of Tarleton State’s new $80 million Health Professions Building.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

STEPHENVILLE, Texas \u2014 Centered around a commitment to answering the state\u2019s demands for access to healthcare in rural and underserved areas, Tarleton State University opened its new $80 million Health …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":53646,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","wds_primary_category":423,"footnotes":""},"categories":[382,422,423,424,425,427],"tags":[430,431,442,443,439,456],"class_list":["post-53643","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homepage","category-morestories","category-academics-research","category-arts-events","category-campus-community","category-science-health","tag-academic-affairs","tag-administration","tag-community-events","tag-construction-renovations","tag-division-of-health-sciences","tag-stephenville"],"acf":{"image":false},"author_meta":{"display_name":"brian","author_link":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/author\/brian-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-3\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/65\/2025\/09\/Health-Professions-Grand-Opening-300x200.png","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["_Homepage<\/a>","_morestories<\/a>","Academics & Research<\/a>","Arts & Events<\/a>","Campus & Community<\/a>","Science & Health<\/a>"],"unlinked":["_Homepage<\/span>","_morestories<\/span>","Academics & Research<\/span>","Arts & Events<\/span>","Campus & Community<\/span>","Science & Health<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["Academic Affairs<\/a>","Administration<\/a>","Community Events<\/a>","Construction & Renovations<\/a>","Division of Health Sciences<\/a>","Stephenville<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Academic Affairs<\/span>","Administration<\/span>","Community Events<\/span>","Construction & Renovations<\/span>","Division of Health Sciences<\/span>","Stephenville<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":0,"relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 7 months ago","modified":"Updated 6 months ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on September 11, 2025","modified":"Updated on October 9, 2025"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on September 11, 2025 2:29 pm","modified":"Updated on October 9, 2025 9:17 am"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53643"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53643\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":53661,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53643\/revisions\/53661"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53643"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tarleton.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}