Texas A&M Health Science Center

Office of the President and
Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs
John B. Connally Building
301 Tarrow, 7th Floor
College Station, TX 77840-7896

February 26, 2010

Dear HSC Community,

Hard to believe, but it’s already been more than a month since our academic convocation. It was an outstanding day that brought the entire Texas A&M Health Science Center community together and, for the first time, we used satellite broadcast to enfold our campuses in Dallas, Temple, Kingsville, Round Rock, McAllen and Corpus Christi. While providing us an opportunity to celebrate our 10-year anniversary, it also allowed us to reaffirm our role in “Leading a Community of Excellence” as we look ahead to the same growth and excellence in the next decade.

With that growth comes challenges, which we are now facing financially. We have submitted our plans to the Legislative Budget Board for meeting the state’s 5 percent budget reduction ($9.9 million) over the current FY10-11 biennium. The decisions over the next two years will be difficult, and we must work together to retain the momentum and strength of our institution. Our first priority is and will remain educating our students and taking care of our most valuable resource – our people

Accreditation preparations are now well under way for the accreditation process performed by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). We were last accredited in 2002, and the approaching SACS visit will be in 2012.  

Accreditation for the HSC is necessary to award degrees and to be allowed to provide financial aid for our students. Accreditation ensures a level of quality in education and provides the stamp of approval that an institution of higher education is viable and secure and, as such, degrees awarded by the institution will be recognized as true achievements. It also gives us an opportunity to review our commitment to the continuous improvement of the education programs of the HSC. The entire HSC community will play an important role in the process.

A new component of the accreditation process is the Quality Enhancement Plan, or QEP. Its goal is to improve some aspect of the educational program at the HSC. The first phase of the QEP process is selecting a program topic based on suggestions made by faculty. The second phase of the process involves topic selection and awards. The deadline for submissions is March 1, and once an appropriate topic is chosen, a detailed plan for implementation will be developed. Additional information about the QEP and overall accreditation process will be in upcoming editions of the Pulse enewsletter and campuswide emails.

The successes of the HSC are due in no small measure to the excellent academic leaders in our component colleges. Unfortunately, when you have standout talent, someone else is often recruiting them. After six years of leadership, Dr. Chris Colenda, dean of the College of Medicine, left us to assume a role at West Virginia University. A search for his replacement is under way, and Dr. Ed Sherwood is doing a great job as interim keeping us moving forward. A second leader who has been a stable force for years is Dr. James Cole, Dean of the Baylor College of Dentistry. Dr. Cole has announced his plan to retire effective spring 2011. A search process for his replacement will begin soon.

Finally, I would like the HSC community to know that construction on the new Bryan campus on Highway 47 continues on time and on budget! Both Lt. Governor David Dewhurst and Texas Senate Finance Chairman Steve Ogden, R-District 5, were impressed with progress during a recent tour of the site, which will provide cutting-edge medical training and health professions education vital to caring for the people not only in this region but also the entire state of Texas. Preparations to occupy the Health Professions Education Building this summer and the Medical Research and Education Building in spring 2011 are ongoing and on schedule.

Best regards,

Nancy W. Dickey, M.D.
President, Texas A&M Health Science Center
Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs, Texas A&M University System