Willerson Begins Update Series Throughout Campus

Raising the bar to make outstanding programs even better was a continual theme during June 28 briefings for all Medical School faculty, staff and students by James T. Willerson, M.D., president of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. The update was the first of a new series during which Willerson will speak at venues throughout the campus.

Noting his confidence in the leadership of the deans of each of the six schools, Willerson emphasized that an aggressive construction program including much needed research space is high on his list for raising the bar.

“The Coordinating Board says we (UT Health Science Center at Houston) are 800,000 square feet below our research space needs,” he noted, while itemizing a long list of campus growth initiatives. Those include the Medical School’s new Research Replacement Building, recently completed School of Nursing and Student Community Center, and the Sarofim Research Building that will open next spring to house the IMM. Additionally, the university is planning new buildings for the Mental Sciences Institute and the Dental Branch. And, he reminded the audience of his efforts to secure Tuition Revenue Bond funding for the new clinic building now owned by the UT Health Science Center.

Recruiting additional faculty identified as among the world’s best in their fields is essential for our future, Willerson noted. These world’s best scientists, he said, will complement the health science center’s outstanding faculty, including the only Nobel Laureate of Medicine and Physiology in residence in the Texas Medical Center, and will help in many ways to define the institution’s future.

Of the $7 million requested in the last session of the Texas Legislature for recruiting world’s best scientists, the health science center received $2.5 million annually to add to the $3 million annually received two years ago. “We are already talking to some outstanding individuals about joining our enterprise,” he said.

On the topic of university leadership, Willerson noted that as president, he is accountable for the university’s success or failure. He works closely with Chief Operating Officer Michael McKinney, M.D., who is responsible for implementing Willerson’s decisions.

On a related topic, Willerson emphasized his accountability to the UT System Board of Regents, and the Chancellor and Executive Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs. He emphasized his dedication to the UT Health Science Center, all of its six schools, and the Texas Heart Institute, where he currently serves as president-elect. “I don’t plan to go anywhere,” he said. “I want to keep doing what I’m doing and be helpful.”