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Serving the Whole Person

Morrison Family College of Health

At the Morrison Family College of Health, we are committed to meeting the needs of the whole person – mind, body, spirit, and community. We will prepare the next generation of leaders to improve health and community well-being. With your partnership, we can make a difference for students today and build healthier communities into the future.

We’re reimagining how health and community leaders can address the needs of the whole person, regardless of birth and circumstance. Our promise is that we will educate students from diverse backgrounds to use and integrate knowledge from different professions and fields to improve health at the individual, family, community and systems levels. We believe that the most relevant and sustainable solutions to advance healthy communities and people is when those most impacted by inequities are also a part of the solution.

We’re also striving to meet an acute demand for health professionals who possess exceptional technical skills, cultural responsiveness, and moral courage to pioneer new efforts and see complex problems as opportunities for innovation to improve health and community well-being. The Morrison Family College of Health is guided by the University of St. Thomas’ mission to educate morally responsible leaders who advance the common good.

We will succeed with support from donors and partners like you.

two people collaborating

Educating to Shift the Status Quo

We are being challenged to be bolder. Current health care systems are interventionist, fragmented and individualistic. We want to re-think how we approach health and design family- and community-centered systems, while addressing the needs of the whole person (physical, mental, social and spiritual). So we’re building a new foundation from the ground up.

a health and human performance professor gives treatment to an elderly patient

Dedicated to Health Equity

The Morrison Family College of Health is designed to fill unmet needs in the community and for those who are underserved in society. Across Minnesota, in rural and urban communities, the social and economic influencers of health must be addressed to ignite structural change so that every person – no matter their background – can live a healthy life. Integrating different academic programs that hold the promise of new solutions to address the root causes of inequity will move us closer to staying strong, healthy and economically vibrant.

a nurse administers a shot

Growing Our Workforce

There is an acute need for nursing, mental health, social work, public health and other health services that help people, families and communities thrive. The Morrison Family College of Health equips students with technical skills, critical thinking skills and cultural competency skills to treat patients and help families by choice or birth stay healthy in a dynamic and rapidly changing world.

photo of MayKao Hang in front of the St. Thomas arches

Meet the Founding Dean

For Dr. MayKao Hang, developing the next generation of health leaders who respond to the people who live in our communities right now is critical. "It is really about educating leaders who are going to go out into the world to have the moral courage and the cultural competency to deliver services...but can also advocate to highlight and remove the barriers for those who are underserved," says Dr. Hang. "The Morrison Family College of Health is brand new, so we can design this with the future in mind. That means being far more globally, ethically and technology oriented."

Leaving a Legacy

As leaders at St. Thomas for more than two decades, John and Sue Morrison have further cemented their legacy at the university as naming donors of the Morrison Family College of Health. “I’m extraordinarily grateful to John and Sue and the Morrison family,” says Dr. Julie Sullivan, President of the University of St. Thomas (2013-2022). “They share our excitement for this college’s potential to address systemic health care challenges in our communities. This approach is fully aligned with our mission to produce graduates who can advance the common good.”
Meet the Morrison Family
studio photo of John and Susan Morrison

Opportunities for Impact

Here are several ways to help the Morrison Family College of Health transform healthcare.

Scholarships and Program Innovation

Scholarships provide support to students who might otherwise not have the opportunity to earn a degree or acquire professional skills. In addition, we seek funds to create the kinds of innovations that attract faculty and students and enable them to be positive disruptors in healthcare education. 

MFCOH Academic Building

At five levels and 100,000 square feet, this new building will serve as a nexus of clinical excellence and interprofessional education, where students and faculty can engage, and community leaders can collaborate to advance change in the delivery of healthcare to the community. 

Center for Whole Person Health and Health Equity

The social determinants of health (access to housing, clean air and water, nutritious food, etc.) account for nearly 80% of the conditions that produce good health. This ambitious new center will focus on advancing health equity by addressing the key factors that build healthy communities. 

General Operating

A lot goes into building a new college from the ground up, and we’re off to a strong start with robust enrollment. Help us sustain growth and support our ambitious approach to disrupt the status quo. 

Get In Touch

To find out more about Morrison Family College of Health, please contact Joe Plante or Michelle Dingwall.