Groundbreaking is expected in May for a new Moravian College $23-million academic building on its Main Street Campus to house its growing health sciences, nursing, public health and health-related programs.

The proposed 55,000-square-foot building, named the Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz Center for Health Sciences, will feature leading-edge technology, enhanced classrooms and research labs, a health informatics computer lab, a virtual cadaver lab, and creative spaces for student and faculty interaction.

The building is named in honor of alumna Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz ’84, who was a member of the Moravian College Board of Trustees from 2008 until she died at age 52, on June 20, 2014. She was chief executive officer and vice chairman of East Penn Manufacturing, said to be Berks County’s largest privately-held business.

“We are pleased to honor Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz’s memory with the naming of the center for health sciences,” said Bryon L. Grigsby ’90, President of Moravian College and Moravian Theological Seminary.

The Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz Center for Health Sciences, designed and to be built by J.G. Petrucci Company, Inc., and ESa Architects, will be at the corner of Main and West Laurel streets on Moravian’s Main Street Campus in north Bethlehem.

With a ground-breaking ceremony scheduled for May 10, the building is expected to be constructed over a 14-month period and be fully-operational for the fall 2017 semester.

After receiving a BA in business management and sociology from Moravian College in 1984, Breidegam Miksiewicz worked during her 30-year career for the company founded by her father, Delight Breidegam, former life trustee of Moravian College, and her grandfather.

“In addition to distinguishing herself in the business world, Sally was an exceptional and vibrant member of the Board of Trustees,” Grigsby said.

“She was unabashedly passionate about her love for Moravian College and was an early supporter of the health sciences facility. More importantly, Sally was a wonderful human being and we are a better college because of her leadership and vision,” said Grigsby.

The Breidegam family has a lasting legacy at Moravian College.

DeLight Breidegam, who served on Board of Trustees of Moravian College for 37 years, spearheaded and supported growth and improvement in the college’s programs and facilities over the years. The Timothy M. Breidegam Track at Steel Field and the Timothy M. Breidegam Fieldhouse stand in honor of his son Timothy, a member of the Class of 1978.

The Breidegam family established the Helen S. Breidegam R.N. Scholarship Fund in honor of his wife, the Timothy M. Breidegam Scholarship Fund in memory of their son, and the Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz Scholarship Fund in memory of their daughter.

The family continues its deep roots at the college. Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz’s son, Daniel, is a 2014 graduate of Moravian; her daughter, Katelyn, is a senior, and her son, Matthew, is a sophomore. Her son, Timothy, graduated from the University of Scranton in 2014.

A notable architectural feature of the Sally Breidegam Miksiewicz Center for Health Sciences will be a three-story atrium with glass handrails, accented by walls of wood, fabric and stone.

The signature element of the building will be an eight-foot. lighted Moravian Star encased in glass at the pinnacle of the building and visible as the building comes into sight as one approaches campus heading north on Main Street. The LEED “certified” building will have LED light fixtures in all spaces.

Nursing spaces will include practical exam rooms for students to simulate patient interactions, low and high fidelity simulation labs with 12 patient beds, and a labor-pediatrics simulation lab.

In addition to the virtual cadaver lab (primary use is by students in the Athletic Training program, and Physical and Occupational Therapies in the future) are a general chemistry lab, research lab, microbiology lab, and anatomy and physiology lab.

The health sciences program at Moravian College starts with a common core of courses, which includes anatomy and physiology, introduction to psychology, statistics, chemistry, and research methods for health sciences. Students then choose one of three professional tracks: athletic training, occupational therapy or physical therapy.

Information: moravian.edu/rehab/health-sciences-bs.