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The Board of Regents for the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system approved an ambitious proposal from Central Connecticut State University to establish a new College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.
The BOR approved the proposal at its Dec. 14 meeting. Prior to the vote, Regent Erin Stewart, the mayor of New Britain, publicly noted her support for the college.
“As a Central graduate and mayor of the host city of Central, it’s very exciting to see a unique approach like this in bringing this program to fruition and making this college a reality.”
Stewart stated that a city like New Britain, which is home to two hospitals, can only benefit from a “pipeline” of students with healthcare experience and credentials.
In its proposal to the BOR, university leadership listed several goals for the new college. Among them, the college aims to unite Central’s existing healthcare-related academic programs; incorporate new programs in high-demand fields; and embed experiential learning, cultural competency, and advocacy for healthcare within its curriculum. The college also will enable its students to gain valuable professional experience through its associated student-run community clinic in Copernicus Hall. The clinic opened in October and provides free health care services to members of the university community and residents of Greater New Britain.
The College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences will bring together the academic departments of Nursing, Social Work, Nurse Anesthesia Practice, Physical Education and Human Performance, and Counselor Education under the leadership of a new dean. A national search for the dean is underway.
“The new college provides the exciting opportunity to foster more and stronger collaborations between departments and programs and create innovative and interdisciplinary academic programs and professional certificates involving all the schools and colleges at Central,” says Central President Zulma R. Toro. “Even better, the creation of this college provides the means to serve our community in new ways, all while providing excellent experiential learning opportunities for our students.”