SW New Mexico News

New Mexico State University (NMSU) has commenced construction on two significant projects aimed at expanding the College of Health, Education and Social Transformation. These projects include an expansion of O’Donnell Hall and renovations to the Health and Social Services Building.

The O’Donnell Hall expansion will add over 15,000 square feet to the existing structure, originally built in 1968. This addition will accommodate the Kinesiology and Communication Disorders departments, providing state-of-the-art labs and an anatomy classroom. Renovations in the Health and Social Services Building will enhance the Nursing Skills and Simulation Center with a new operation room simulation space for the anesthesiology program.

The combined cost of these projects is estimated at $18.8 million. Funding was largely secured through a general obligation bond approved by New Mexico voters in November 2022, which allocated $15.5 million. Earlier that year, House Bill 153 was passed by the New Mexico Legislature and signed by Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, authorizing additional funding.

At a ground-breaking ceremony outside O’Donnell Hall, Phillip Post, interim dean for the College of HEST, highlighted the significance of these developments: “This state investment will enhance our ability to prepare nursing, communication disorders and kinesiology students with cutting-edge equipment and spaces that reflect real-world health care settings.”

Plans also include renovating part of O’Donnell Hall’s ground floor to expand the Papen-Aprendamos Autism Diagnostic Center and house the Edgar R. Garrett Speech and Hearing Center. The center has provided speech-language pathology services for over 60 years under the Department of Communication Disorders.

Sylvia Y. Acosta, CEO of NMSU Foundation, emphasized during Friday's ceremony that "the expansion is more than just about space," pointing out its role in social mobility and economic development.

The renovation aims to address New Mexico's nursing shortage by establishing an operating room suite dedicated to NMSU’s nurse anesthesiologist program.

Ammu Devasthali, chair of NMSU Board of Regents, expressed gratitude towards New Mexico voters: “This project is proof that voting ‘yes’ on GO bond issues can have a transformational effect on the work that we do here at NMSU.”