In a move to better address today’s health care needs and enhance its mission to provide a values-based education, Benedictine University announced the establishment of a College of Science and Health. The move restructures the College of Education and Health Services and streamlines Benedictine Colleges from four to three: Science & Health, Liberal Arts and Business. Benedictine will continue to offer its full complement of Education courses through the School of Education.
“This new College will provide students with both the knowledge and inspiration to help solve our world’s health problems today and into the future,” said Benedictine President Charles Gregory. “Students will find a wide-variety of course options in science and health designed specifically to prepare them for careers in these fields.”
The re-imagining of science and health into a single College will result in innovative collaborations and curriculums that offers students the opportunity to take a new and creative mix of courses that brings disciplines together to study complex problems such as global warming and public health by integrating fields such as chemistry and biology.
According to the College’s new dean Dr. Elizabeth Ritt, faculty in the newly formed college have been at the forefront of research, scholarship, innovative teaching, and service to the broader community for decades. “The COVID-19 pandemic has brought our team together with a steadfast focus on tracking global health concerns. Just consider what our immediate and global communities are facing: infectious disease, chronic health problems, climate change, the lack of accessible and affordable health care, and significant healthcare disparities. It will take a multi-disciplinary approach to manage and solve these problems and that’s what Benedictine’s College of Science and Health is designed to accomplish.”
Alumni SpotlightText
Brian R. Poustinchian, D.O., is a native of Carol Stream and earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology at Benedictine University in 2006. He earned a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree at Midwestern University’s Chicago College of Osteopathic Medicine, where he currently serves as course director and clinical assistant professor of Internal Medicine. Poustinchian completed a residency program at Rush University Medical Center and John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County’s Primary Care Internal Medicine Program. He currently practices in the western suburbs as the medical director of the Northwestern Medicine Delnor Hospitalist Program. Poustinchian was awarded the 2013 Distinguished Physician Award for outstanding service to Delnor Hospital. He has been published in The Journal of Heart Valve Disease and The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, and has provided continuing medical education presentations in several states.
What our students say...
"Benedictine University College of Science fosters growth between me and my professors, as well as the challenging curriculum which would help me be successful in medical school. I thoroughly enjoy and am appreciative of the vast opportunities available for me. Not only are the professors helpful, they are caring and are more than willing to guide students. Furthermore, it is easy as pie to gain research experience due to the wide-variety of options available."
The Benedictine Benefit
Tonia Rucker
Senior Assistant to an Academic Dean
Email: trucker@ben.edu
Phone: (630) 829-6187
Fax: (630) 829-6186
Dean's Office Hours:
8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Dean's Office Location:
Birck Hall Room 119
