Med School Expected to Meet Occupancy Date

              Despite Construction Lag
Med School Expected
To Meet Occupancy Date
By Margaret Martin
Times Medical Writer
Although construction on
the Louisiana State University
Medical School at Shreveport
is behind the original time
schedule, the building is
expected to be ready for
occupancy as planned,
according to Claude Franklin,
project architect for
Associated Medical School
Architects.
Associated Medical School
Architects is made up of three
local architectural firms,
Samuel G. Wiener &
Associates, Wilson & Sandifer,
and William B. Wierner and
Morgan & O'Neal. H. A. Lott
Inc. is contractor for the
project. Franklin said that
the contractor had been given
time extensions and would
probably be given more
because of routine weather
and labor problems.
The question on the
construction came after the
new medical school dean, Dr.
Clifford G. Grulee told
students, faculty and staff
members at convocation
yesterday that the opening
might be delayed.
More Extensions Seen
The architect spokesman
said in an interview that the
original completion date was
September 1974, with the
occupancy date September
1975. The completion date has
been moved to June 1975, but
Franklin insisted that this will
not delay the scheduled
opening.
The medical school building
is being constructed adjacent
to Confederate Memorial
Medical Center, the teaching
hospital.
Any delay in the opening of
the school would have a
bearing on when the size of
the entering classes would be
increased.
The school, which now has
41 entering freshmen, has
been scheduled to go up to 64
the first year in the new
building and to 96 the next
year, Grulee said.
"The timing becomes
crucial. . .," the dean said.
Grulee, who took over the
reins as dean July 1,
discussed several other
matters with the faculty and
students.
Recruitment of faculty is
high on his list of priorities for
the coming year, he said,
explaining that he wants to
improve both the breadth and
depth of the faculty.
The medical school
program is becoming more
and more demanding he said
and there is a need for
fulltime department heads to
relieve the volunteer
physicians who are in private
practice.
Physicians are being
interviewed for the heads of
obstetrics and gynecology,
p s y c h i a t r y , and
anesthesiology.
Grulee says he also plans to
add several other new faculty
members in various
departments.
The new dean said he would
also like to have what he
called "greater strength in
depth" among the present
faculty — both clinical and
basic sciences.
Grulee also said he will
appoint an executive
committee from the faculty
council, which will include
representation from the junior
faculty and the clinical
faculty; that he would like to
add student representation to
appropriate committees of the
faculty, and this is being
discussed by faculty
members; that he is hoping a
faculty retreat can be
arranged to review objectives
and goals of the school.
Philosophizing at the end of
his talk, Grulee said the
coming school session "looks
like a vintage year to me."
The potential for the local
school, he said, is greater
than for any school in the
state.
" . . . the problems are less
complicated, the potential is
not beclouded by decisions
cast in bronze which affect the
school and its options . . .,"
Grulee said.