October 26, 2005
'SIU Connections' will focus on new health center
CARBONDALE, Ill -- The nearly completed Student Health Programs facility at Southern Illinois University Carbondale is the subject of an upcoming WSIU Television broadcast aimed at tracking the University's progress in its ongoing building program.
"SIU Connections: The Future is Now" airs at 9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4. Chancellor Walter V. Wendler hosts the 30-minute program and will tour the new building with Student Health Programs Director Cheryl A. Presley.
"Generations of Salukis have relied on the caring professionals in our Student Health Programs," Wendler said. "They're a terrific group of physicians, dentists, nurses, health care professionals and educators dedicated to delivering the best in a broad array of health and wellness services to our students. And very soon, they'll have a state-of-the-art facility that will match their reputation for quality."
Construction crews began work on the $9.6 million, 57,000-square-foot building in June 2004. Workers are in the final phase of construction of the building, located adjacent to the Student Recreation Center on the east side of the campus. University health service workers will begin moving in phases in mid-November and will be finished by year's end.
The new facility will replace the current buildings located on Greek Row.
The new facility, paid for mostly with student health fees, will house a continuum of care under one large roof. Services located there include a clinic, pharmacy, Wellness Center, emergency dentistry, counseling, insurance office, laboratory, mental health clinic, sports medicine and physical therapy, among others. It also includes a 120-seat auditorium and conference rooms.
Previous broadcasts featured the recently completed Troutt-Wittmann Academic and Training Center and the refurbished Altgeld Hall. Future episodes will highlight Saluki Way, the Morris Library expansion, the new SIU Cancer Institute at Springfield, the Transportation Education Center, Southern Illinois Research Park, the Wall Street/Grand Avenue Apartment Complex and other classroom improvements.
The current $172-million building program is the largest at SIUC in four decades.
Communicating the activities and opportunities available at SIUC is among the goals of Southern at 150: Building Excellence Through Commitment, the blueprint the University is following as it approaches its 150th anniversary in 2019.