Ohio University expands corporate partnerships, academic opportunities on Dublin campus

Ohio University will soon welcome longtime partners to its Dublin campus in a move that will strengthen relationships and make possible on-campus clinical encounters for medical and health professions students.

Next spring, the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations, OrthoNeuro and the Orthopedic Foundation will open operations, and the Ohio University Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs will expand two programs, in Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine facilities on the University’s Dublin campus.

“With the addition of industry onto Ohio University’s Dublin campus, we are realizing a shared goal with the City of Dublin to expand and develop corporate partnerships and academic opportunities,” Ohio University President M. Duane Nellis said. “We couldn’t be more pleased than to welcome partners who further our mutual support for strength in community health, research, medicine, public service and academics.”

“Having mission-aligned partners joining us on the Dublin campus will provide great opportunities for our students and the growth of our relationships with these partners,” said Ken Johnson, D.O., executive dean of the Heritage College and chief medical affairs officer for Ohio University.

Renovations are underway in OhioHealth Medical Education Building 2.

The Osteopathic Heritage Foundations will be relocating its central Ohio headquarters to the second floor. With a mission to improve the health and quality of life in the community through education, research and service consistent with the osteopathic heritage, the Foundations are the largest osteopathic-supportive private foundation in United States and a major benefactor of the Heritage College.

“Relocating the Foundations’ headquarters to the Dublin campus will enhance our connection with osteopathic medical students and will ensure that we are well-positioned to further our philanthropic priorities that align with and advance the principles and practices of osteopathic medicine,” said Terri Donlin Huesman, M.B.A., president and CEO of the Osteopathic Heritage Foundations. “We are excited for the move next year and look forward to hosting our community partners on the campus so they can experience firsthand the state-of-art learning environment provided by the Heritage College.”

The founding of Ohio University’s Dublin campus was made possible by the Foundations and their transformational $105 million award to the Heritage College in 2011. A medical school campus in central Ohio was a centerpiece initiative of the award, called Vision 2020: Leading the Transformation of Primary Care in Ohio. Part of the funding went toward the purchase of the Dublin property, which included the three buildings that the Heritage College renovated and opened as its central Ohio campus in 2014. The intent of the central Ohio medical school campus was to train more physicians who would be recruited from central Ohio and stay in central Ohio to practice, largely in primary care specialties. The three graduating classes from this campus have exceeded these goals.

OrthoNeuro, a multi-specialty physician practice with locations around central Ohio, will open its newest practice on the third floor. OrthoNeuro is a longtime clinical partner of the Heritage College, with whom students have participated in clinical experiences throughout their four years of undergraduate medical education.

“I just love it that we’re going to be on this campus, and we’ll be that much more closely tied to medical education,” said Larry T. Todd Jr., D.O., president of OrthoNeuro. “For our patients, it’s important to be on the leading edge of care; teaching and research are the foundation for that. We’re constantly researching, learning and teaching both operative and non-operative solutions for our patients, and teaching and research keep us on that leading edge.”

“We celebrate 80 years of practice in 2021 when we move in,” Todd said. “OrthoNeuro is the longest-standing orthopedic specialist group in central Ohio, and many of our doctors are Heritage College alumni.”

“Having a clinical practice co-located with the medical school brings invaluable opportunities for our students to interact with the on-site physicians, physical therapists, nurses and other health care providers as part of their daily routines on campus,” said Bill Burke, D.O. (’88), dean of Heritage College, Dublin. “That’s really special.”

The Orthopedic Foundation will also move its office to the second floor. The Orthopedic Foundation is a philanthropic organization associated with OrthoNeuro that is dedicated to improving the quality of patient care and medical services through a commitment to research, education and prevention of orthopedic and neurologic disorders.

“This has been a long time in coming,” said Daryl Sybert, D.O. (’86), chairman of Orthopedic Foundation. “Our mission focuses on research to better the lives of patients with severe arthritis and neurogenerative conditions. We want medical students and young physicians studying the scientific literature and making strong connections between science and providing care in clinical settings.”

In 2017, OrthoNeuro and the Orthopedic Foundation began the Orthopedic Foundation Summer Intern Research Program. Since its inception, 32 Heritage College students have been awarded internships.

“We aim to create physician-scientists,” Sybert added. “This is such an honor, such a pleasure, and frankly, very energizing to finally be this close to medical students, and we’re very excited for this move.”

“Thanks to the Orthopedic Foundation and OrthoNeuro, our students and faculty have had important clinical research opportunities in orthopedics, neurology or podiatry and wound care,” said Brian Clark, Ph.D., executive director of the OHIO Musculoskeletal and Neurological Institute and the Osteopathic Heritage Foundation Harold E. Clybourne, D.O., Endowed Research Chair. “Our research institute and Heritage College medical student interns have had a longstanding and fruitful collaborations with OrthoNeuro that have already yielded several impactful journal articles, and I am optimistic that their move to Dublin will help fuel this collaboration.”

Interns work under close supervision of OrthoNeuro physicians while conducting research. Data collection for research projects is conducted at OrthoNeuro’s central Ohio locations.

With a larger space in Medical Education Building 2, the Voinovich School will continue its expansion of two programs: the Executive Master of Public Administration program, which is the only Executive MPA program offered in central Ohio; and the George V. Voinovich Academy for Excellence in Public Service, a professional and executive education program for current and future leaders in public and nonprofit organizations emphasizing leadership and capacity building.

“Leadership development, mentoring and networking are critically important now for Ohio’s public agencies, nonprofit organizations, legislative offices and local and state government agencies,” said Mark Weinberg, Ph.D., dean of the Voinovich School. “Our new facility is part of our planned, strategic growth of essential public service education throughout Ohio.”

Ohio University’s Design and Construction team is managing the project, with Pepper Construction executing the renovations. Pepper Construction completed the 2013-2014 Dublin campus renovations.