Winona State University is the lead institution in the establishment of a new Center for Integrated Health Science Education and Practice that received approval and funding from Board of Trustees of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU).

The trustees approved the request which sought $3.3 million for the first two years of the program under MnSCU's Centers of Excellence initiative. Those funds will be enhanced by institutional reallocation and matching contributions from a variety of partner organizations.

Winona State University faculty, staff and administrators worked closely with partners at other Minnesota higher education institutions and local and regional health care providers to develop the Center. This unique partnership includes Rochester Community and Technical College, Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical, Pine Technical College and Ridgewater College; as well as Benedictine Health System, Minnesota HomeCare Association, Olmsted Medical Center, Olmsted Public Health Services, Rochester and Winona Public Schools, and Winona Health

The Center will focus on positioning Minnesota as a leader in health care education, practice and innovation, particularly for recruiting and retaining a more diverse health care work force. It also will focus on preparing a work force that understands advances in technology in today's care settings.

Christine Barajas, associate vice president for Academic Affairs at Winona State University, said the Center seeks to design easily negotiated pathways for education and training of a workforce that can provide compassionate, comprehensive, competent and coordinated care for Minnesota citizens of all ages in both rural and urban settings.

"We need to increase the number of well-prepared graduates from our programs, so they can fill the current and future vacancies in the health professions," Barajas said. "We also aim to enhance the current workforce by providing new models of education, professional development and continuing education delivery."

For higher education, Barajas said the main goal of the Center will be the delivery of health sciences education and training that is closely aligned with the health care delivery system. The Minnesota health care industry benefits from the establishment of the center through improved numbers of highly qualified and effective health care providers and reduced costs associated with orientation, turnover and employee development.

"Perhaps most importantly, the community at large is the big winner," Barajas said, "because our citizens will have better access to improved health care."

The Center for Integrated Health Science Education and Practice at Winona State University is one of four Centers of Excellence approved by MnSCU. Each center will be housed at a state university and have community and technical college partners. The other three approved programs are: The Center for Strategic Information Systems and Security at Metropolitan State University; The Center for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence at Minnesota State University, Mankato; and The Consortium for Manufacturing and Applied Engineering at Bemidji State University.

James McCormick, MnSCU chancellor, said the new centers of excellence build on the academic talent, programs and resources already at these institutions.

"The centers will establish flagship programs in areas critical for the state to maintain its competitive edge," McCormick said. "With two-year colleges and state universities working together, the centers will no doubt attract strong faculty talent that will provide Minnesota residents with best-in-class national programs and draw top students from outside the state."

The centers were selected from among 11 finalists reviewed in a two-step process by business, industry and higher education leaders. "This process encouraged our institutions to create synergies with each other, making each center greater than the sum of its parts," said Linda Baer, MnSCU senior vice chancellor of academics and student affairs.

"The centers also enable a more strategic use of our resources because the winning proposals already have strong programs in place," Baer said.

Each center is or will seek to become regionally or nationally recognized in its area. All the centers intend to greatly strengthen partnerships with K-12 schools and businesses and industries. Many of the centers will develop innovative curricula and offer hands-on opportunities for career awareness and readiness and for career preparation and development. Applied research to help businesses and industry associations stay in the forefront of meeting workforce challenges will be another focus.

In addition, some centers intend to enhance services to recruit and retain a more diverse student population to better reflect the state's changing demographics.

Funding for the centers will come from a $10 million state appropriation initiated by Gov. Tim Pawlenty and approved by the Legislature.

"We're pleased that the governor and Legislature gave us this challenge," said David Paskach, chair of the MnSCU Board of Trustees' Educational Policy Committee. "We believe we have met it. We're eager to have these centers establish Minnesota as a leader and innovator in higher education."

Winona State University, founded in 1858, is the oldest member institution of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities and serves 8,000 students on its main and west campuses in Winona and through the Winona State University-Rochester Center in Rochester, Minn.