St. Mary’s University will receive more than $5.5 million in federal appropriations, secured by District 20 U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, to help fund the construction of the Blank Sheppard Innovation Center, which will accommodate manufacturing research and courses as well as a new nursing program.
A news release said funding was signed into law as part of the fiscal year 2023 omnibus appropriations law, which also included more than $10 million procured by Castro for additional San Antonio community projects.
St. Mary’s University and its School of Science, Engineering and Technology broke ground on the three-story Blank Sheppard Innovation Center in October. The additional $5.5 million will help build and equip seven new laboratories on the first two floors of the state-of-the-art, 30,000-square-foot center, the release said.
The Blank Sheppard Innovation Center will support advanced manufacturing research and instruction. It will also promote outreach with industry and community partners engaged in engineering, computing and related scientific disciplines. The third floor will become home to a planned bachelor’s degree in nursing program, the release said.
St. Mary’s University President Thomas Mengler said the new federal money and the innovation center will improve educational opportunities for St. Mary’s University students, many of whom are from neighborhoods in the 20th Congressional District, San Antonio’s West Side and the Rio Grande Valley.
“Also, because so many of our students, whether from San Antonio or not, wish to pursue careers in our great city upon graduation, the Innovation Center will promote economic and research development in San Antonio for many years to come,” Mengler said in the statement.
Castro said he wanted to ensure residents and St. Mary’s University students in his congressional district in the center of town get their fair share of funding.
“I look forward to seeing the center bring together bright minds in the advancement of cutting-edge research as well as host a new Bachelor of Science in nursing program that will strengthen our city and state’s health care system,” Castro said in a statement.
The construction of the building is scheduled for completion in 2024, including the seven labs funded by the new federal appropriations, with spaces dedicated to:
- Robotics and smart manufacturing
- Measurement and instrumentation
- Human factors engineering
- Additive manufacturing and reverse engineering
- Data science and machine learning
- Innovation, entrepreneurship and supply chain
- An engineering design studio
The new labs will serve up to 400 students a year, including the entire engineering student body, computing students and those earning the Graduate Certificate in Cybersecurity, and students from other disciplines, the release said.
The spaces will also be used by about 30 faculty members each year and about 20 industry partners sponsoring student project work. The center’s resources will be made available to the local manufacturing base for projects, training and technology demonstration, the release said.
