Dear UCSF Community,

I am pleased to share some exciting news that will shape the future of the health professions education at UCSF. We have been searching for ways to provide urgently needed space for the UCSF School of Dentistry and a modern hub for our health professions education — and we are announcing today that we have acquired two buildings adjacent to our Mission Bay campus that will help solve this challenge.

At 409 Illinois St., we will create a modern, purpose-built space with expanded opportunities for learning, collaboration, and patient care, ensuring that UCSF continues to lead in educating the health professionals of the future. The building will also include state-of-the-art dental clinics to train students in delivering high-quality care while serving the growing oral health needs of the Bay Area.

This new hub will support and expand on our educational mission at Parnassus Heights, bringing together students from dentistry, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and physical therapy in shared learning spaces, including advanced simulation labs and classrooms designed for team-based education. This interdisciplinary environment will prepare students to deliver coordinated and patient-centered care as leaders in an evolving health care landscape.

The investment comes at a critical time, as we face significant space constraints for our students and outdated facilities for dentistry. As these fields change and evolve, we must create new spaces that enable our students to thrive in their education and prepare for their future roles as health leaders.

As part of this work, we will be converting a lease in the building next door at 499 Illinois St., where we currently occupy 90% of the space for research, clinics, and administrative offices. This conversion to a mortgage helps us lower our costs and makes them more predictable over the long term.

This project reflects years of thoughtful planning and collaboration, and I want to recognize the leadership of Catherine Lucey, executive vice chancellor and provost, and Mike Reddy, dean of the UCSF School of Dentistry, for their vision in advancing our education and patient care. I also want to thank Brian Newman, vice president of Real Estate, for his work in bringing this acquisition to completion.

Renovations for the new facility are expected to begin next year, with completion targeted for late 2029. I invite you to learn more about this exciting development by visiting our story on UCSF.edu.

Sincerely,

Sam Hawgood, MBBS

Chancellor
Arthur and Toni Rembe Rock Distinguished Professor