ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 16, 1996 TAG: 9603180113
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY STAFF WRITER
With $950,000 from the state to assure its operation through 1999 and a gift of land from the power company for a new home, Roanoke's College of Health Sciences had reason to celebrate Friday.
So it did, with a surprise "Thanks a million!" reception for President Harry Nickens.
Nickens pushed the recent General Assembly for $1 million to help the college become independent of its parent, Community Hospital of Roanoke Valley. He also made the request to American Electric Power Co. for land.
About $350,000 of the college's annual $4 million budget comes from Community. A year ago, the hospital said it would continue the subsidy only through May 1997.
Nickens said Friday that by the time the money from the legislature is used up, increased enrollment and slightly higher tuition should bring the school sufficient operating income.
The college has been part of Community Hospital since 1982 and is located on the hospital grounds at Jefferson Street and Elm Avenue in downtown Roanoke.
Community wanted to spin off the college because the hospital's owner, Carilion Health System, has said it wants to get out of business not directly related to delivering care to patients.
The hospital has promised that the college can stay where it is for free even after it becomes independent. However, because of an expected increase in enrollment, mostly from the addition of new programs, the college likely will outgrow the site within five years, Nickens said.
The college enrolled 561 students last fall and expects to have 800 in three or four years, he said. It is adding a four-year degree in nursing and a physician assistant program.
Rather than have to renovate the current quarters, a 1950s-vintage office-apartment complex, it seemed like a better investment to look for a place to build a facility, he said. A new home has been in the college's long-range plan since 1992, he said.
When Nickens asked AEP, the former Appalachian Power Co., if it had any land it would consider donating to the school, he was told about several tracts, said AEP Vice President Charles Simmons.
The piece Nickens chose is in West Roanoke County between U.S. 11 and Interstate 81 near Dixie Caverns. The property, valued at $160,000, originally was purchased for right-of-way for transmission lines, and two lines cross the land, Simmons said.
The AEP board still must approve the donation, Simmons said.
Helping the college appealed to AEP because the health-care professionals it graduates benefit AEP employees, he said.
The physician assistant program the college that will start next year was a big plus in persuading AEP to respond to Nickens' request, Simmons said.
A physician assistant works under the supervision of a doctor but can do many of the same things, which helps a medical practice serve more patients. The physician assistant specialist is in great demand, especially in the many areas of Western Virginia where there aren't enough doctors.
"We've got about 1,100 employees now living in counties designated as medically underserved," Simmons said. "We've got a lot of reason to want to do this."
More than 500 of the school's students come from 21 Western Virginia counties, 19 of which have been designated by the federal government as medically underserved. Eighty-five percent of last year's graduates returned home to work, Nickens said.
LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: map showing location of site donated by AEP. STAFFby CNB