Last April, Chancellor Phyllis Wise announced the University was considering developing an engineering-based medical college on its Urbana campus.

The proposed College of Medicine would combine engineering, computing, health sciences and medicine, unlike its sister school at the University’s Chicago campus or any other medical school across the country. It would be the first of its kind and an asset to the University, as well as to medical education as a whole.

But at a Sept. 3 Board of Trustees meeting, UIC suggested that the University take an alternate route. It proposed the current College of Medicine work with Urbana’s College of Engineering to instead create a “Translational BioEngineering Institute,” which The Daily Illini reported would promote biomedical research and economic development. 

Although such an establishment would have benefits of its own and might be a more viable option under different circumstances, we agree with the University’s decision not to accept UIC’s proposal.

Financially, developing an Urbana College of Medicine would be the best choice for the University. Its creation would not require any additional state funding or compete with other University programs for funds. Donors and partners would help with the college’s cost.

Adesida said that Carle Health System has already expressed willingness to invest $100 million into the development of the program, and Presence Covenant Medical Center has communicated an interest in a partnership.

Not only would these partnerships be favorable for the financial health of the University, but they would also benefit students looking to conduct medical research — especially since our campus has twice the revenue for research than most other colleges, according to Provost Ilesanmi Adesida. 

Students from all across campus would be afforded countless new opportunities, as they would be at the forefront of ground-breaking research we’re confident the college would facilitate. 

Additionally, an Urbana College of Medicine would make our campus more attractive to prospective professors. The University’s Chicago campus is filled with great medical minds, and we want the same for our downstate campus, as well as its students. They’re vital to a well-rounded multi-campus University, but unfortunately, as Adesida stated, four professors from the College of Engineering have left our campus because of its lack of a full medical college. 

We already have all the facets to create the college — it just needs to be integrated together to improve our already high-quality University as a whole. It would supplement UIC’s College of Medicine in a way the UIC-proposed institute wouldn’t. 

We think the first-of-its-kind college with a focus on engineering, computing and health sciences could inspire others to create similar institutions, and we look forward to this potential addition.