New Academic Building to House Nursing & School of Professional Counseling

LWC School of Professional Counseling Dean John Rigney and LWC Vice President for
Academic Affairs Bettie Starr review the drawing of the new academic building that
will house the college's counseling and nursing programs. The 26,000-square-foot,
two-story building will be opened for the 2011-12 school year.

  COLUMBIA, Ky. -- In response to Southcentral Kentucky's public health needs, the Lindsey Wilson College Board of Trustees voted on Saturday to build a new academic building to house the college's nursing program and School of Professional Counseling.

Construction on the 26,000-square-foot, two-story building will begin later this year. The building -- which will be located next to the college's Jim & Helen Lee Fugitte Science Center -- will be ready in time for the start of the 2011-12. The cost of the project will be about $3 million.

"In addition to housing one of the college's premier academic programs and one of its up-and-coming programs, this new academic building will also provide much-needed classroom space for our growing college," said Lindsey Wilson President William T. Luckey Jr.

Figures for LWC's 2010 fall enrollment are not yet final, but college officials already know a record of more than 2,500 students are enrolled. The college's previous record enrollment of 2,341 was set last fall. Included in this year's record student body are more than 1,100 residential students, also the most in the college's 107-year history.

"We are out of classroom space on our A.P. White Campus, so if we want to continue to serve the educational needs of Southcentral Kentucky, we must have a new classroom building," Luckey said.

The new classroom building is welcomed news for LWC School of Professional Counseling Dean John Rigney, who oversees one of the college's largest academic programs. Currently, the SPC's faculty and staff are spread out among four houses that have been converted into offices and classrooms.

"This is such a boon to our program because a new academic building will allow all of our professors and support staff to be in one location," Rigney said. "That will make it much more convenient for our students, and it will create an atmosphere that is more conducive for collaboration among our outstanding faculty."

The new academic building will also boost LWC's fledgling nursing program, which offers students a bachelor of science degree. Since its inception, the two-year-old nursing program has been housed in a remodeled floor of the 44-year-old Goodhue Academic Building.

"The Goodhue Building has been a great place to start the nursing program, but the new academic building will offer our nursing students numerous advantages," said LWC Vice President of Academic Affairs Bettie Starr. "Locating it next to the Fugitte Science Center will provide our nursing students with convenient access to the buildings where they have most of their classes."

Starr said the new academic building will have several features currently not available in the Goodhue Academic Building, such as a nursing skills lab that will include an isolation room that simulates working with patients with infectious diseases.

"It will be an incredible building when it is opened next fall," Starr said.

Having a building that houses counseling and nursing programs is also a sign of LWC's commitment to meeting the region's health needs, Starr said.

"There is a well-documented shortage of licensed professional counselors in Southcentral Kentucky," Starr said. "Kentucky is also one of the unhealthiest states in the country, and Southcentral Kentucky residents consistently rank near the bottom in leading healthy lifestyles. So this new academic building demonstrates Lindsey Wilson's commitment to public health -- both physical and mental."