NYIT to Open Second Location of Osteopathic Med School at Arkansas State University

An innovative approach to establishing a medical school in Arkansas will bring NYIT's College of Osteopathic Medicine (NYITCOM) to the Jonesboro campus of Arkansas State University and address the state's healthcare needs.

NYITCOM at Arkansas State University (A-State) will open in August 2016 with an inaugural class of 115 students. The Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA) endorsed the launch of NYITCOM at A-State at a meeting earlier this month.

"This distinctive planting of an established medical school of a not-for-profit university on the campus of a public state university and the added collaboration with the Arkansas healthcare community is a winning formula," said NYIT President Edward Guiliano, Ph.D. "It enables us to open a medical school and enhance the healthcare community to serve the people of Arkansas faster and at far less cost than previously imagined. It also leverages NYIT's success working globally with local partners, leveraging technology, and sharing expertise to meet demonstrated needs."

As of Feb. 23, 122 students were accepted at the new location and 86 have already committed to attend. Additional responses are expected through the end of next week.

A-State approached NYIT in 2012 with the idea of bringing its medical program to Jonesboro. Arkansas ranks 49 out of 50 in its population's health status and 48 out of 50 in the percentage of active physicians per 100,000 people, according to national studies. Currently, there is only one medical school in Arkansas.

"We've distinguished ourselves in producing primary care physicians who stay and practice in the areas they train," said NYITCOM Dean Wolfgang Gilliar, D.O., noting that more than half of the college's graduates annually enter the primary care areas of family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics.

Renovations at A-State’s Wilson Hall are scheduled to be completed in mid-May, and a celebration with Arkansas government and health officials is planned for June 2. New students will receive their white coats on August 3, the first day of school. Nineteen faculty members, staff, and administrative positions have been filled; 80 positions will be filled within two years.

"Since A-State approached us, we've developed a new model of medical education for Arkansas," said Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O., distinguished medical expert, public policy leader, and NYITCOM at A-State site dean. "Together with A-State, the community, and our healthcare partners, we'll educate physicians in Arkansas for Arkansas."

Leaders from both institutions, led by Ross-Lee and A-State Vice Chancellor for University Advancement Jason Penry, have worked with regional institutions to establish hundreds of clerkship positions for third- and fourth-year students and 66 residency slots for graduates.

"This is an extraordinary, transformative development for the citizens of Arkansas and the Delta, and for our institutions," said A-State Chancellor Tim Hudson, Ph.D. "NYIT's highly regarded osteopathic curriculum is a boon to our university, our community, and to all of the new medical students we will welcome to our campus."