Now THAT’S a groundbreaking! First real dirt turned Friday, July 26, on new College of Health Sciences building!

Friday, July 26, marked the beginning of a new era as heavy equipment began turning dirt for the new $8 million, 30,000-square-foot Colleges of Health Sciences building.

Perry-McCall Construction is scheduled to complete the project in July 2014. Dasher Hurst Architects of Jacksonville is providing design services.

A centerpiece of JU’s $85 million ASPIRE comprehensive campaign, the new two-story building is part of a $20-million phased plan to meet growing demand by expanding the College of Health Science’s facilities, programs, faculty and partnerships with the medical community.

The new College of Health Sciences building will have advanced technology, dedicated classrooms, faculty and staff offices, meeting rooms, a multidisciplinary simulation learning center, a computer laboratory and more. It will use green technology and offer the latest in active learning environments, with classrooms designed to be reconfigurable for the most effective, engaging space and teaching styles.

About 1,600 students are enrolled in the College of Health Sciences. With Nursing and Exercise Science program increases, and the addition of programs in Speech-Language Pathology, Health Executive Leadership, Occupational Therapy and Health Information Management, enrollment is projected to rise as much as 40 percent, to about 2,300, students by 2016.

To see facts and renderings for the new college, view the .pdf below: