Spalding Receives $2M Grant for School of Physical Therapy
Spalding University in Louisville, Ky., received a $2 million grant this week from Kosair Charities for its new School of Physical Therapy. The funds will be used for an ongoing renovation project converting a campus building into the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program’s new home. The facility will be named the Kosair Charities School of Physical Therapy and Center for Interprofessional Education, and construction is scheduled for completion by late 2021.
The renovation project converting the former V.V. Cooke Chevrolet dealership, which the university acquired in 2019, is set to cost about $7 million in total. It represents one of the largest capital projects in the university’s history. The facility measures in at 21,500 square feet and will house three skills labs, an anatomy education center, student study spaces, and collaboration space. The DPT program will open its doors to its first class in fall 2022; it has already begun accepting applications, and the first class is likely to contain 40 to 50 students.
“Kosair Charities’ history and mission has long been interwoven into the fabric of Spalding university, with our first grant in 1996. We are thrilled to announce a grant totally $2 million to support the newly named Kosair Charities School of Physical Therapy and Center for Interprofessional Education at Spalding University,” said Kosair Charities President Keith Inman. “A portion of these funds will allow the creation of Kentucky’s first residency and fellowship programs in pediatric physical therapies. Kosair Charities is proud to be a part of this milestone moment for our state and community.”
The new facility will also house the university’s Center for Interprofessional Education, which unites a myriad of health and science disciplines—including occupational therapy, mental health services, and social work—to collaborate underneath one roof.
“There are expected to be about 47,000 new jobs in the United States over the next 10 years in physical therapy, and there is a critical need for pediatric therapists in the commonwealth of Kentucky,” said Spalding President Tori Murden McClure. “So there is no doubt that this new pediatric physical therapy program is meeting the needs of the times.”
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Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at mjones@1105media.com.