Dear Members of the Campus Community,

I write to share the exciting news that the University of Illinois Board of Trustees voted unanimously today to establish the nation’s first college of medicine focused, from the beginning, on the intersection of engineering and medicine. This will be the first new college created on our campus in 60 years.

It will be a partnership between the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Carle Health System, and it is specifically designed to train a new kind of doctor and drive technology-based innovations in health care. This ground-breaking approach will integrate the university’s unparalleled assets in engineering, technology and supercomputing with Carle’s nationally recognized, comprehensive health care system. While infusing engineering with medicine is a distinctive facet of the proposed college, this new school also will tremendously benefit from leveraging expertise and knowledge from across the campus.

The professionals we educate will advance health care far beyond what we can currently comprehend. Not only will their patients benefit, but the impact they make will extend to countless others who will be healthier as a result of their medical discoveries.

The College of Medicine grew from recommendations in a 2014 economic development study conducted by the Research Park. Since that time, faculty and staff members from across campus have been working with Carle physicians and staff to develop business, governance and financing plans. I want to thank all of the faculty leaders, the Academic Senate and all campus deans who have been involved in the evaluation process. In addition, many community, state and national leaders have contributed critical thoughts that have been essential to establishing this truly unique college of medicine. Your advice and criticism have made our plan stronger, more strategic and a greater opportunity for broad collaboration with every academic unit across campus, with UIC and with other collaborators.

The college will be funded through a combination of revenue from new inventions, medical student tuition, corporate investments and private philanthropy.

The next steps toward making our shared vision a reality include seeking approval by the Illinois Board of Higher Education, recruiting a founding dean, securing financial support from donors and investors, and submitting material to seek accreditation from the Liaison Committee for Medical Education. As our vision continues to mature, I look forward to continued discussions on how the new college can truly reflect the breadth of excellence that is Illinois.

If you would like to learn more about the college, please visit the following link: www.medicine.illinois.edu

Sincerely,

Phyllis M. Wise
Chancellor