Saint Anselm College has announced plans to expand its nursing department offerings and establish a School of Nursing and Health Professions, which will be housed in a new facility.

The school is being created as a result of recommendations made by a nursing commission set up by the college, said Saint Anselm’s president, Dr. Joseph A. Favazza.

“Without a doubt, our nursing program is among the finest in the country and features some of the best outcomes at the college,” Favazza said. “The direction outlined by the commission will ensure that we maintain our elite position while remaining distinctly Anselmian.”

The new nursing facility is preliminarily estimated to be between 40,000 and 50,000 square feet and is estimated to cost between $20 and $25 million. It would include nursing simulation labs, high-fidelity patient simulators, classrooms, office space and other special features.

Earlier this year, a partnership was announced between Saint Anselm and Catholic Medical Center to build a 13,000-square-foot simulation lab on the hospital’s Manchester campus. The project received a $2 million federal grant to advance the project.

“We are excited by the prospect of a state-of-the-art building, which will provide a modern learning environment and allow us to expand our lab and simulation capabilities as we move forward,” said Maureen O’Reilly, executive director of the nursing department. “We are very proud of our program, and our goal is to maintain the quality education which produces the outstanding nurses that employers have come to expect.”