Fort Wayne Center receives state support for medical education

Photo by Roger Hoversland Gov. Frank O’Bannon (left) visited the laboratory of Kent Redman this semester at the IU School of Medicine’s Fort Wayne Center for Medical Education. Redman is course director of medical biochemistry and is involved in proteomics research.

Currently, the IUSM Fort Wayne Center for Medical Education is housed on the third floor of the Classroom Medical Building. The program has been operational since 1981 and provides the first two years of the four-year medical education curriculum to 16 freshmen medical students and 16 sophomore medical students each year. The 14,000 square feet of assignable space currently houses all of the center’s teaching, research and outreach activities.

“We have a golden opportunity to maintain the high quality of our academic programs while ramping up basic science research in northeast Indiana with the $14 million from the Indiana General Assembly, said Barth Ragatz, assistant dean and director of the Fort Wayne Center for Medical Education. “This will make it possible for us to build a new center that encompasses our educational efforts as well as expanded research efforts. Therein, 30,000 square feet of space primarily for research will allow us to participate in northeastern Indiana economic development. We have a history of research in cardiovascular, neurosciences and natural products research, and this will permit us to explore other areas as well.”

“The IUSM is an essential partner with other Indiana research universities and private corporations in the Indiana Life Sciences Initiative,” said Dr. D. Craig Brater, IUSM dean. “These partnerships give us the opportunity for Indiana to become a leader in biomedical research and biotechnology.

“We have developed a statewide hub-and-spoke model to implement this initiative, Brater continued. “The IU School of Medicine, based on the IUPUI campus, will serve as the research hub. The eight Centers for Medical Education, located throughout Indiana, will become the research spokes, working closely with the main campus but also working independently with their local economic base.”

Brater emphasized that IUSM depends on all its medical education centers to help convert life sciences research into a new economic sector for Indiana. The school as a whole aims to double its research to create the statewide infrastructure to sustain a strong biotechnology economy.

“These monies from the General Assembly make it possible for us to become an important player in meeting the vision of Dean Brater,” Ragatz added. “We are excited about continuing our partnership with our host campus as well as the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center which will be building a facility on new land deeded to IPFW. This is an exciting time for us as we develop not only local relationships but other research opportunities with scientists throughout IUSM statewide.”