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Ground breaking ceremony held at JSCC for new Health Sciences Building | Jackson State Community College

Ground breaking ceremony held at JSCC for new Health Sciences Building

Nov 20th, 2015

Jackson State Community College held a ground breaking ceremony Friday for a building that will be the permanent residence of its allied health programs. This is a momentous event in the history of JSCC that has been planned now for over 15 years. Construction of this facility will mark the completion of a transformation that began with the construction of the Jim Moss Center for Nursing.
A number of individuals were on hand to commemorate the event. Jackson State officials, employees, Chancellor John Morgan from the Tennessee Board of Regents, area medical partners, local and state governments and the Jackson Chamber gathered at the construction site to commemorate this event. Representatives from Fleming Architects and Hoar Construction were also in attendance.
Dr. Bruce Blanding, JSCC President, welcomed everyone and all of those that have contributed to get the college to this point.
The new facility will be home to the college’s allied health programs which currently include: medical lab technician; radiography; emergency medical technician; physical therapist assistant; occupational therapy assistant. Beginning in 1969 with the radiography program, the college quickly became the leader in West Tennessee as the primary source for highly-qualified personnel in the medical community.
When asked about what the new facility means to him, Dr. Tom Pigg, Dean & Program Director of Allied Health, said, "I am thrilled to see this project become a reality for our students. This demonstrates the commitment that Jackson State has to these programs and is also a testament to the prominence of the college in West Tennessee’s medical communities."
The new building will have in excess of 40,000 square feet that will include classrooms, labs, conference halls and spacious common areas. While the architecture of the new facility will be markedly different from the original structures first constructed in the 1960s, it will be a perfect compliment to the new nursing center just opened this fall.
The completion of this construction project will complete a whole new look and feel to the Jackson State campus. A new quadrangle or courtyard will be created as a result. Automobile traffic will be rerouted around the campus so that a pedestrian-friendly, park-like area will be made to connect the newly created quad with the current quad.
Dr. Blanding has commented that the college is really starting to “come of age” as it approaches its 50th year. “This has been an exciting couple of years,” he explains. “It’s a great feeling to finally make a permanent place on our campus for these key programs. It helps to demonstrate to our students, faculty, staff as well as all of West Tennessee that Jackson State is a solid supporter of the medical community.”
The project is slated to begin construction immediately following the groundbreaking ceremony and should be completed in approximately 12 months. The allied health programs should begin occupying the new building during the spring of 2017.



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