VSU Celebrates Opening of Health Sciences and Business Administration Building

VALDOSTA--Valdosta State University held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Health Sciences and Business Administration (HSBA) building on Friday, April 18, at the Rea and Lillian Steele North Campus.

The ceremony included remarks from VSU President William J. McKinney, Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens, Georgia Senator Tim Golden, former VSU President Ronald M. Zaccari, and former VSU Interim President Louis Levy. Following the ceremony, guests were invited to tour the facility.

“As we continue to build a more engaged and innovative Valdosta State, our Health Sciences and Business Administration building will serve as one of Georgia’s premier academic facilities designed to educate future health care professionals,” said VSU President William J. McKinney. “The programs housed inside the HSBA building are the cornerstone for our focus on comprehensive health care education, allowing us to expand partnerships and collaborations with South Georgia Medical Center and other regional health care providers, enhancing economic development through applied research and business partnerships, and improving the quality of life for South Georgia residents.”

The $32 million, approximately 150,000-square-foot structure houses six health professions programs: nursing, athletic training, exercise physiology, communication sciences and disorders, social work, and health care administration. The building will also include a dental hygiene program in partnership with Wiregrass Georgia Technical College.

Previously housed in five different buildings across campus, the HSBA building allows students and faculty to engage in cross-disciplinary discussions and research, in addition to expanding interaction with health professionals at South Georgia Medical Center and other health agencies.

The HSBA building has allowed the Langdale College of Business Administration to introduce a new Bachelor of Business Administration and online Master of Business Administration in health care administration.  In May 2013, Communication and Sciences Disorders was approved to offer a Doctor of Speech-Language Pathology, to address the needs of professionals at the service, administration, and clinical research level. In addition, the HSBA building will provide space for development of a doctorate in nursing, a master’s degree in exercise physiology, and a bachelor’s degree in social work.

The HSBA building was designed by Heery International and Ellis, Ricket and Associates (ERA), the building was designed for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. Lovell Engineering provided civil engineering services and Doran and Karwoski provided landscape design.

VSU’s Office of Communications has developed an online media kit that includes videos and articles about the HSBA and the programs housed in the building. Visit the website http://blog.valdosta.edu/hsba/ or call Office of Communications 229-333-2157.