In a resolution passed at a special meeting on Friday evening, the University of the Virgin Islands board of trustees authorized the university to enter into a loan not to exceed $21 million to help fund the construction of its planned medical school, slated to open in the fall of 2016. The loan will be provided by the U.S. Department of Education’s Historically Black College and University Capital Financing Program, which primarily offers loans to fund renovation and repairs of the nation’s HBCUs, but also occasionally helps to fund the construction of new facilities.
The development phase of UVI’s Medical School, which proposes new buildings on both St. Thomas and St. Croix, was announced in April of last year around the time of a $30 million donation to the project by New Generation Power and its Chairman, Dr. Chirinjeev Kathuria. The university has since named Dr. Benjamin Sachs, former dean of Tulane Medical School, as the school’s interim dean. In December, an accreditation application was submitted to the Liaison Committee on Medical Education. read more…
