Historic Campus Building Transformed
Opening in February is Touro’s new campus addition, Truett Hall, a cutting-edge, student-centered hub for innovation, inclusivity, and education.
This February 2024, almost 5 years since the project started, Truett Hall will be officially opening its first floor to the campus community.
The latest addition to Touro University California (TUC), this initial phase focuses on accommodating the student affairs team and others who are located at the off-campus building on Walnut Avenue.
“It’ll be great to have them back on campus,” says Dr. Tami Hendriksz, Interim Chief Academic Officer, and Dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM). “It’ll really help to bring a heart to our campus with all of them here.”
Also opening is a new student center that includes student body input on design elements for the space. The involvement of students in designing the new center ensures that it becomes an interprofessional space catering to the needs of all students.
The second floor will encompass two expansive classroom spaces to accommodate the expansion of the COM program. Additionally, it will feature an ultrasound suite.
The Social Justice Resource Center will move out of the library and into the third floor of Truett Hall, along with a testing center, offices, and a designated home for the School of Nursing and the Graduate School of Education. A serene meditation room is also part of the allocation of space that aims to cater to the diverse needs of different academic disciplines and student services, but it hasn’t come without obstacles.
“We have worked hard to come up with solutions for spaces that were not originally designed to be used for education,” says Newman Hoffman, Interim CEO and Vice President, of some of the challenges that arose, requiring innovative solutions. “For example, in our large, L-shaped learning spaces, we will be employing technology solutions to allow students on one wing of the classroom to be heard and seen by students on the other wing.”
Hoffman highlights the technical progress, emphasizing the completion of essential infrastructure like electrical wiring, data systems, and HVAC. As the construction moves toward the finishing touches, the focus shifts to selecting furniture and flooring, signifying the imminent realization of this ambitious project. While the construction of Truett Hall wasn’t easy, it also offered freedom to create.
“Our campus consists of beautiful, old, historical buildings and this allows us the opportunity to embrace a revitalizing perspective, breathing new life into our surroundings,” says Hendriksz.