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Advancing Health Sciences

The University’s rapidly growing Health Sciences Campus spans more than 13 acres in Johnson City, N.Y., and is conveniently located near two of the region’s healthcare systems: UHS Wilson Medical Center and Ascension Lourdes Hospital.

The School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences opened its doors at the Health Sciences Campus in 2018. The campus also features the newly constructed Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences, and it will be home to the Ford Family Wellness Center for Seniors and a pharmacy research and development building.

Generous contributions from some of ������ϲ�����’s top supporters have made the vision for the Health Sciences Campus a reality and are contributing to its continued development. With philanthropic funding for ultramodern programs, equipment and infrastructure, ������ϲ����� is reinventing health sciences education for a new generation of professionals and researchers.

"At the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, we are developing our Doctor of Pharmacy students to become outstanding leaders in pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences using contemporary medication management and innovative research,” said Founding Dean Gloria Meredith. “Our vision is to position our students to practice at the top of their profession and transform human health locally and globally.”

"By expanding into a college of nursing and health sciences, Decker is laying a foundation for the future,” said Mario R. Ortiz, Decker College dean and professor of nursing. “Our vision is to position ������ϲ����� as a national and international leader in health education, research and practice, as well as meet community needs for health professionals, which will only continue to increase as the population ages.”

Educating the next generation … and solving complex problems … to build a better world together 

The Dr. G. Clifford & Florence B. Decker Foundation, for example, has provided millions of dollars in support over the years to buy high-performance tools that put the University on the cutting edge of research and education in health sciences.

“By supporting the Decker College of Nursing and Health Sciences, and the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, we are providing resources for top-quality research and education and fulfilling our mission of enhancing healthcare in the community,” said Gerald E. Putman ’76, MBA ’84, executive director of the Decker Foundation. “The new Health Sciences Campus is an important part of the growth of ������ϲ�����. Our investment is not only in students and faculty, but also in their potential — their future discoveries and outcomes that could change the world.”

Donor Impact

Decker’s Innovative Simulation and Practice Center is accredited in Teaching/Education by the Society for Simulation (SSH) in Healthcare. It is the first nursing school in New York state to achieve this accreditation. The simulation center, enhanced with significant support from the Decker Foundation, will occupy the entire second floor (15,000 square feet) of the new Decker College building. Practice spaces will include a 19-bed learning lab set up as a hospital unit with a classroom in the center.

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An anonymous community member, who is also a ������ϲ����� alumnus, donated land for the Health Sciences Campus, contributing to the University’s growth and potential. 

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Caring for older adults in the community and educating those committed to senior care have special meaning for Anne A. Hubbard and her family. Thanks to her support, the Ford Family Wellness Center for Seniors has vital resources to provide integrative, primary healthcare and holistic health and wellness services to the community through collaborative partnerships. Construction of the center’s new home at the Health Sciences Campus is expected to be completed by the end of 2021.

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Emilie Ernst 

Emilie Ernst ’21 is in the ������ϲ����� Scholars Program and majoring in both biochemistry and integrative neuroscience. She plans to pursue a doctorate in biomedical research, specifically immunology and pharmacology.

In addition to the Shellig Fund support, Ernst received an Undergraduate Research Award funded by ������ϲ����� Fund for Excellence donors for her work on SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing.

I have specific interests in degenerative diseases of which Duchenne muscular dystrophy is a part of. The way muscles degrade over the course of the disease was something I wanted to learn more about. It’s also a disease that mostly impacts children and young people so I thought finding a way to non-invasively track the disease was really important. I remember how much I hated having blood drawn as a kid so I know that taking a muscle biopsy or a blood sample on top of everything else must be really stressful. So I wanted to get involved.

“Through the Dr. Mildred Shellig Fund for Student-Faculty Research Collaboration, I was able to continue my research developing a test that uses non-invasive samples to track treatment and disease progression in Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients.

“I have continued my work on this topic and have recently submitted a manuscript on SARS-CoV-2 rapid antibody testing to a journal for publication. I am also a teaching assistant for a class where students are researching SARS-CoV-2 genetic evolution and thinking about doing an honors thesis partially based on the work I did.