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You can’t walk far across campus without seeing Senator Jane Nelson’s impact on HSC. 

Since taking office in 1993, she has helped the university double in size, expand to six schools and lead a culture change around safety in health care with the founding of the Institute of Patient Safety, now known as SaferCare Texas. HSC even awarded her its inaugural Patient Safety Advocate Award in 2016. 

From the Health Pavilion to the Center for BioHealth to the Medical Education and Training building, Senator Nelson has been at the forefront of HSC’s growth. She successfully advocated for $80 million from The Texas Legislature to help fund construction of the Interdisciplinary Research and Education Building, a 173,000 square-foot, five-story building on Camp Bowie Boulevard designed to promote extraordinary teamwork.  

“The growth of the Health Science Center is rooted in Senator Nelson’s advocacy for our university,” HSC President Dr. Michael Williams. 

A champion for reducing the backlog of sexual assault evidence kits, she has been a long-time supporter of the university’s world–renown Center for Human Identification. Sen. Nelson shares a passion with HSC to improve access to health care and protect vulnerable Texans. 

A school teacher turned legislator, Senator Nelson maintains the heart of an educator. Her passionate advocacy for health education make her an HSC Hero.

Join us throughout 2020 as we celebrate the people, events and innovations that made UNTHSC all it is today — and look ahead to the next 50 years. For the 50th anniversary, team members nominated people whose contributions make them HSC Heroes. Each week, a new Hero will be revealed. View the list of all our Hero profiles published so far this year. There is a new one each week.

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