| “Clearly,
our scientists are involved in studies that have tremendous
implications for Montanans in particular and for the world.” |
| --
Dean Forbes, dean of the UM pharmacy school |
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Pharmacy
building expansion planned
With space
at a premium, the University’s School of Pharmacy and Allied
Health Sciences has received a $3 million federal grant to help fund
an $11.5 million expansion project.
The National Institutes of Health has agreed to put up the $3 million
challenge grant to help fund the expansion — as long as UM can
raise the additional $8.5 million to complete the expansion of the
Skaggs Building. The school is now actively pursuing other avenues
of funding to complete the project.
Plans
for the 42,000-square foot addition on the south end of the Skaggs
Building include the construction of offices, conference rooms, an
electronic-classroom/science-learning center complex, a tiered classroom
and student support areas.
Dave Forbes, dean of the School of Pharmacy and Allied Health Sciences,
said the expansion is necessary to support the tremendous growth in
research and academic studies at UM. During the past decade, UM has
attracted world-class researchers and has projects under way on a
wide variety of major, modern-day medical problems.
“Clearly, our scientists are involved in studies that have tremendous
implications for Montanans in particular and for the world,”
Forbes said.
With more than 90 active research grants, the school ranks No.1 on
the UM campus for bringing in external funding. Top areas of research
in the school include environmental health issues, cardiovascular
studies and neuroscience.
In addition to its own studies and cooperative ventures with other
UM departments, the school collaborates with St. Patrick Hospital
and Health Sciences Center, the International Heart Institute and
the Montana Neuroscience Institute. The school also operates the interdisciplinary
Environmental Health Sciences and Structural and Functional Neurosciences.
The scope of research studies prompted the school to add “biomedical”
to the name of its Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
“This is much more reflective of the training program we offer
students,” said Vernon Grund, chair of biomedical and pharmaceutical
sciences. “We do very little classical pharmaceutical research
such as drug delivery anymore."
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