More than 100 physicians from Urbana, Ill.-based Carle Foundation Hospital and professors from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus have signed on to teach at the university's new medical school, which is set to open in July 2018, according to The News-Gazette.
Officials said the Carle Illinois College of Medicine's faculty is currently composed of roughly 41 physicians from Carle and 63 professors from the Urbana-Champaign campus. While the majority of professors are from the traditional science departments, faculty from eight different colleges, spanning agriculture to social work, have signed on to teach at the new medical school. Officials said the medical school is also recruiting "physician-scientists" outside of the university to teach students and conduct research, according to the report.
Roughly 70 faculty members will reportedly be directly involved in teaching the courses offered at the school, while others will help develop the curriculum and administration.
King Li, MD, dean of the Carle Illinois College of Medicine, said allowing faculty to have part-time positions increases the number of professors who can contribute to the school's curriculum.
"What we're trying to do is really leverage the diverse expertise throughout the campus, and also from the Carle system. This campus-wide collaboration, I would say, is almost impossible to see in other campuses in this country. Most people want to hold on to their star faculty. They spend time and money recruiting these people to their college," instead of allowing them to teach at both colleges within the university, Dr. Li said.