Groundbreaking updates can be seen on Poisson Hall, the site that will turn into the new School of Nursing and Health Sciences at Saint Anselm. Plans for the new institution have been in the works since last academic school year, and the vision is finally beginning to hit the ground running. Construction and renovations will be apparent soon, as well as the contributions of the newly appointed Dean of Nursing and Health Sciences, Diane Uzarski.
Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr. Sheila Liotta, has been overseeing and leading the process of designing and implementing the new school. According to Liotta, “the building design is kind of in the late stages of being finalized,” but small tweaks are being made here and there with the help of the new dean, explaining why the college is beginning to see progress.
Dean Uzarski is not the only one making changes, and considerations are being taken into account from all who are on the team, for fresh eyes and perspectives. With finalization of plans closely in sight, “the goal is to get Poisson knocked down in this semester, and begin the construction in the winter,” Liotta said. Though it may be noisy, a fresh look will be added to the Saint Anselm campus in just a few short months.
Another cause for the delay in construction is due to the relocation of Poisson faculty. “Different people are going to different places,” Liotta said “and a good chunk of things are moving into the library.” Though these locations are serving the faculty right now, “the expectation is [they are] probably not permanent locations,” Liotta said. There are thoughts about where people will be placed, but no concrete plans have been made of where to relocate. “They have to be functioning there for a couple years before we can see where they can go,” Liotta added.
Saint Anselm’s nursing faculty will all have offices in the new building, but it is not just limited to them. “The other programs that are in the school, like health sciences and public health will have a presence in the building,” Liotta said. A space will be made there for the new programs, and will likely be seen with conference areas, classroom spaces, and labs. Though the building is sanctioned for nursing and other health sciences classes, there will also “be general use classrooms,” Liotta said, for the other academic programs at the college.
Inclusion in the building is important not only to Liotta and the team members for its implementation, but is also wildly important to the new Dean of Nursing and Health Sciences, Diane Uzarski.
Uzarski was appointed as the Dean in June and began working officially on Jul. 24. Though she is new to Saint Anselm, she is not new to the duties of administration, nursing, and health sciences. Before working at Saint Anselm, Uzarski had “an untraditional career in nursing”, due to her previous work in nursing and her “diverse career in healthcare.” Her work extends beyond just nursing, including “work in public health,” and she does not just have a nursing degree. Experience in all fields made Uzarski an excellent addition to the faculty of the college.
Uzarski’s prior experience will come in handy for the plans she has envisioned for the new school. “We’re creating a brand new community, which is different from building a building,” Uzarski said. It’s not just the establishment itself that Uzarski is concerned with, but the school within the establishment. “My vision for what this community will be, is that we are in the center of campus and our doors are open,” Uzarski said, and “we are building opportunities to intersect liberal arts students with our health professions students.” Uzarski already seems to be aligned with the values of community and of the liberal arts even with her short time at the college.
To see her vision through, Uzarski said they are “building a strong foundation for our school,” to enhance the already robust nursing program, and to build the two new programs. Building a strong foundation “includes a leadership team, faculty involvement, student involvement, getting alumni involved,” and figuring out how to prepare Saint Anselm students to deal with healthcare issues outside of the college.
With the addition of Uzarski to faculty, and plans being finalized, the new school of nursing will be getting started in the fall of 2025, but the programs will be seeing changes with Uzarski’s help sooner than that. With Uzarski’s devotion to the college and for the students, Saint Anselm will undoubtedly see intersection with all students and programs of the college.
