A multi-million-dollar renovation is underway at Ivy Tech Sellersburg to modernize the Health Sciences Wing to the Baptist Health School of Health Sciences and Baptist Health Life Sciences Laboratory Suite, creating improved opportunities for students who are better prepared to fill the region’s healthcare needs.
“This will really give our students an opportunity to experience what they're going to walk into once they graduate and go into the workforce” said Dr. Travis Haire, Chancellor of Ivy Tech Community College Sellersburg. “Creating state-of-the-art facilities will help prepare our students for success as they advance in their majors and their careers.”
The Pfau Hall renovation won’t be the only change students will notice this fall. The former Ogle Virtual Library has been reimagined as Ogle Commons, where students can collaborate, study individually, or just enjoy the fireplace and a cup of coffee between classes. “Reimagining Ogle Commons is an opportunity for us to meet students right where they are because education is constantly evolving,” Dr. Haire said.
‘The sky is the limit.’
The primary focus of renovation efforts at Ivy Tech Sellersburg remains the 96,000-square-foot Pfau Hall. Ivy Tech Sellersburg was awarded a $3.1 million federal CARES grant and received a $2.5 million commitment from Baptist Health to fund the project—in the process, creating the Baptist Health School of Health Sciences and the Baptist Health Life Sciences Laboratory Suite.
The life sciences wing will include labs for biology, microbiology, anatomy, and chemistry, which are classes many students take as prerequisites before they go into health sciences or nursing. It will also feature top of line tools to help students develop the technical skills needed to become experts in their field of study. Dr. Haire said, “This is going to open up opportunities for students to where the sky is the limit.”
The goal is to have the laboratory renovation completed in January, perhaps even in time to host Ivy Tech Sellersburg’s second round of eight-week classes in 2024.
Work on the overall Health Sciences project will have an estimated completion date in May, just in time for summer classes. “We’re excited to help give students that leg up. With these new facilities, we’re providing them with real-life experience so they’re well-prepared for the future,” Dr. Haire said.
Closing the healthcare gap
The effects of the Pfau Hall renovation are likely to be felt well beyond Sellersburg. With Indiana among the many states facing a shortage of healthcare workers, programs within the rechristened Baptist Health School of Health Sciences can open a prospective student’s eyes to healthcare career fields beyond nursing, in turn helping to narrow that employment gap at the same time.
“When we go into the doctor's office, the healthcare professional who takes our blood pressure, takes our temperature, height and weight, that's a medical assistant. And we have that program,” Dr. Haire said. “It's a matter of being strategic on how we educate students, how you bring in a student and show them the different careers, and then give them the different tools to make sure they're successful as they approach their careers.”
Interested in learning more about the Baptist Health School of Health Sciences and Baptist Health Life Sciences Laboratory Suite? Ivy Tech Sellersburg’s 2nd Fall term begins on October 23rd. Contact Ivy Tech Sellersburg by phone at (812) 246-3301, by email at asksellersburg@ivytech.edu, or visit IvyTech.edu/Sellersburg for further information.
