Tuition Revenue Bonds Approved by Texas Legislature for Science Building at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso - June 10, 2015

For Immediate Release
June 10, 2015

Contacts:
Laura E. Gallegos, Ed.D., (915) 309-5647, laura.gallegos@ttuhsc.edu
Lisa Ruley, (915) 479-5798, lisa.ruley@ttuhsc.edu

Over $75 million in tuition revenue bonds (TRBs) were approved by the recent 84th Texas Legislature to build Medical Science Building II at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso campus. The original plan for the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine was to have two medical science buildings. The first, Medical Science Building I opened in 2005. Medical Science Building I houses four centers of emphasis—Cancer, Diabetes and Obesity, Infectious Disease, and Neurosciences.

“We are extremely appreciative that the legislature chose to authorize state-funded campus construction projects this session. It represents a significant investment and sends a clear signal regarding the importance of higher education in our state. The capital projects approved for the institutions of the Texas Tech University System will help address facility needs due to our continued growth in enrollment and research. This commitment of nearly $250 million in projects to the Texas Tech System, including $75 million to TTUHSC El Paso, is critically important to the continued success of our institutions, our faculty and our students. We express our sincere thanks to the entire West Texas legislative delegation for their efforts and support. We appreciate the tireless efforts of Sen. Jose Rodriguez, Rep. Cesar Blanco, Rep. Marisa Marquez, Rep. Joe Pickett, Rep. Joe Moody and Rep. Mary Gonzalez on our behalf,” said Texas Tech University Chancellor Robert Duncan.

“Medical Science Building II will allow our research programs to expand by recruiting additional scientists to tackle the border’s health-related challenges. This means greater odds of turning new research findings into preventative measures and effective treatments. We are grateful to our state legislators for making TTUHSC El Paso a top legislative priority,” said TTUHSC El Paso President and Dean of the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, Richard Lange, M.D., M.B.A.

The five-year TTUHSC El Paso strategic plan calls for growth to over 1,400 students and residents. Enrollment this past fall for students in all three schools was at an all-time high with a total of 491 students.

Clinical departments at TTUHSC El Paso include anesthesiology, family medicine, internal medicine, neurology, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedic surgery, pathology, pediatrics, psychiatry, radiology and surgery.

About Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso (TTUHSC El Paso) is the Texas Tech University System’s fourth university. The mission of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center at El Paso is to improve the lives of people in our State and our community by focusing on the unique health care needs of socially and culturally diverse border populations through excellence in integrated education, research, and patient care. TTUHSC El Paso is comprised of the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, the Gayle Greve Hunt School of Nursing, and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. The university has a clinical practice called Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso, which is part of the largest network of health care physicians in West Texas. Research focuses on cancer, diabetes and obesity, infectious diseases, and neurosciences.