TTUHSC El Paso president talks school expansion, curriculum

It is the time of year students across the Borderland are going back to class, but at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso and the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, some have been in class since May.

Biomedical Science students start on August 17.

TTUHSC El Paso is seeing a surge in students which means the campus is expanding.

Dr. Richard Lange, TTUHSC El Paso President and Dean of the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine told ABC-7 more than 4,000 students applied to attend this fall semester, but only 100 were accepted.

Dr. Lange said the school is at full capacity.

In 2009, there were only 40 students total and now there has been a 1,500 percent increase in enrollment up to this year.

“We’re going to be looking at what we can do to potentially increase the size of our medical school class,” Lange said.

A new $83 million dollar facility is going up on campus that will double the capacity for research. Another portion of the facility will be used for education and administration.

Dr. Lange said it should be complete in about two years.

“We have a lot of students who want to come here for the opportunity to train in the most innovative curriculum in the United States,” Lange said.

According to Lange, TTUHSC El Paso is the only medical school that teaches its students to learn Spanish.

“When they graduate, they will have four years of intensive Spanish language and those are skills that they can take that around the U.S.,” Lange said.

The school’s curriculum includes simulation training where students can practice on simulation models or on patients.

“We’re one of the very few centers accredited to do that,” Lange said.

“We have students see patients very early on, we revolve our curriculum around not just memorizing facts, but how to be a life-long learner.”

Lange said TTUHSC El Paso focuses its research in four specific areas: neuroscience, infectious disease, cancer and diabetes.

“Whenever anybody sees a Texas Tech physician or faculty member or student, I want them to know that we’re striving for excellence,” Lange said.