A town hall discussion, Leadership Forum: One Vision | One Future, was held Sept. 26 at the Holly Auditorium. It gave leaders from UT Health San Antonio and The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) an opportunity to discuss the merger and take questions from the audience.
“Today is an opportunity to share updates and information about the merger, as well as a chance to get to know Dr. Eighmy like I’ve come to know him over this last month,” said UT Health San Antonio Acting President Robert Hromas, MD, FACP, as he introduced UTSA President Taylor Eighmy, PhD.
Hromas discussed UT Health San Antonio’s historic growth and plans for future expansion, like the UT Health San Antonio Multispecialty and Research Hospital, opening Dec. 10, and the new Center for Brain Health. He also praised the university’s many prestigious and impactful programs and centers.
“All of this has brought us to greatness, but we are not yet satisfied. The status quo is not acceptable,” Hromas said. “I believe that the merger with UTSA can push all of us past the status quo.”
Hromas then highlighted UTSA’s strides in the past seven years under Eighmy’s leadership, noting its old reputation as a commuter school that has now become a Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education R1 Research university, among the top 4% of research universities in the nation. He also emphasized the two universities’ complementary qualities.
“So much of what they do — engineering, computer science, AI, demographics — we don’t do. And what we do, health care education and training, they don’t do. So, we’re synergistic and can make each other better,” Hromas said.
Eighmy spoke about his vision for the integration and reiterated the opportunities and growth that will come with it.
“Although this is not formally verified, this merger might be the biggest academic integration process in the history of higher education in the United States. Only in Texas could you do that,” Eighmy said.
Eighmy, who served as a chief research officer at the University of New Hampshire, Texas Tech University, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, before arriving at UTSA, emphasized the importance of research and discovery and stressed his commitment to the research mission and continuing the growth and success of both institutions.
“UT Health San Antonio is an institution that has driven powerful discovery and improved and saved many lives,” Eighmy said. “I promise to continue to deeply advocate for our trajectories, for what has come before, for where we are now, and especially for where we will be and the impact we will have on the world as one university. So we will honor the past, celebrate the present and go light speed forward into the future.”
He then outlined key benchmarks that if achieved would elevate the university to the ranks of world-class research institutions.
| Annual Benchmarks | After first year of merger | After 10 years |
| Students | 39,000 | 50,000 |
| Workforce | 17,000 | 25,000 |
| Budget | $2.1B | $3.5B |
| Research expenditures | $450M | $1B |
| Federal research expenditures | $173M | $450M |
| NIH expenditures | $125M | $250M |
| Doctoral degrees granted | 226 | 450 |
| National Academy members | 10 | 30+ |
“These are all benchmarks that put us in the most competitive realm among the great research universities in the United States. We have to dream big,” Eighmy said.
Eighmy also emphasized that integration would benefit both institutions without diminishing either.
“This merger is about building and growing, not consolidation,” he said. “In this case, one plus one equals 10.”
“Our community deserves a world-class university,” he added. “In some ways, we are the university of the future in the city of the future. Our demography and circumstances reflect a huge opportunity for us. If we can solve the health and education disparity challenges here, we will lead the way for the rest of the nation.”
After Eighmy spoke, the audience was encouraged to submit questions using a QR code to a panel of leaders from both institutions. In addition to Hromas and Eighmy, the panel included:
- Andrea Marks, MBA, CPA, senior executive vice president and chief operating officer, UT Health San Antonio
- Kacey Neece-Fielder, EdD, associate vice provost of continuous improvement and accreditation, UTSA
- Jennifer Sharpe Potter, PhD, MPH, senior vice president for research, UT Health San Antonio
- Jacquline Mok, PhD, vice president for academic, faculty and student affairs, UT Health San Antonio
- Heather Shipley, PhD, provost and executive vice president of academic affairs, UTSA
They recognized concerns and emphasized that the merger will be a long process. They encouraged faculty, staff and learners to continue submitting questions for future town hall meetings, which will be announced in the coming weeks.
Other opportunities for questions pertaining to research activities are also being offered through a series of town hall meetings hosted by Potter.
Up-to-date information, including recent questions and answers can be found at www.UTSanAntonioTogether.org.