CBU dedicates College of Health Science campus

Riverside – The day was warm, the sun was shining and spirits were just as bright as the College of Health Science at California Baptist University dedicated its campus on Oct. 4.

Faculty, staff, city officials, health professionals and university supporters were on hand for the dedication.

“Students will be trained to live their life’s purpose in this wonderful field of helping others,” said Dr. Ronald L. Ellis, president of CBU. “We hope we remember this day as not a beginning but another pause on the way to what’s ahead for us.”

The facility is now the main campus for the College of Health Science that includes multiple office spaces, classrooms and labs to host a broad range of programs including two associate degree programs plus nine undergraduate and five graduate programs.

In 2015, the College of Health Science campus relocated to the former Riverside Christian Schools campus on Monroe Street across from the Lancers Outdoor Athletic Complex. The Health Science campus comprises more than 70,000 square feet under roof on more than 11 acres. A $17.5 million-plus remodel transformed the campus into a state-of-the-art learning center.

Dr. Charles Sands, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, said the Health Science campus is a place for students to grow and learn how to serve.

“As a university committed to the Great Commission, I’m excited to be a part of a college and a campus that focuses on serving other people,” Sands said. “Our entire university does that and the College of Health Science is a microcosm of that.”

Riverside Mayor Rusty Bailey said he has watched CBU grow over the years into a university whose reach can be felt throughout Riverside and across the globe.

“I find it fitting that CBU would invest in the health sciences field, not only to prepare students to face the challenges of a growing aging population and to meet the demands of a shortage of health care professionals in our city and our region, but because we know that a great portion of Christ’s earthly ministries were dedicated to healing the sick and reaching out to the least and the last and the lost,” Bailey said.

Judy Carpenter, chief operating officer and president of Riverside Medical Clinic, said linkages between educational systems and employers are critical in increasing the supply of health care providers.

“We commend you for your commitment in training our future health care providers. This expansion will prove to be vital in addressing the shortage of health care providers in our region,” Carpenter said. “By training students, our future providers, our region will benefit.”