Please note:  This project is in early development and design.  There will be changes in the design and physical layouts.  This document is intended to give you an idea of the direction of the project to help you decide if you would be interested in contributing your expertise though art in the public spaces.

DIXIE STATE COLLEGE – HEALTH SCIENCES FACILITY

The Health Sciences Department oversees the classes and programs, which prepare a student for a career in selected healthcare fields. The courses you will see under HLOC are classes, which are common to most health programs.

Dixie State College of Utah, a publicly supported state college with two interdependent tiers, functions as a comprehensive community college while offering a limited number of quality baccalaureate programs.

Dixie State College of Utah helps students achieve their academic, career, and life goals, including goals related to basic skills, core content knowledge, and knowledge that broadens and enriches students' lives. The College's educational programs help students establish and expand their worldviews.

With a lower-division open-door admission policy, the College welcomes students both young and old who represent diverse educational, ethnic, national, and economic backgrounds. The College's students are predominantly residents of southwest Utah and other western regions, both in and out of Utah, and are predominantly of traditional college age.

A member of the Utah System of Higher Education, Dixie State College of Utah is assigned the task of providing and coordinating higher education for Washington and Kane counties.

HISTORY OF DIXIE STATE COLLEGE

By Dan Watson

Dixie State College of Utah emerged from the desire for learning of the Mormon pioneers who lived in the remote isolation of Utah's Dixie, a plain on the Virgin River in the heat of the Mohave Desert.The people supported modest schools early, but permanent roots for secondary and post secondary education were planted only after the colony had survived 50 years.The early LDS ward schools gave way to a public school in 1901 when the handsome Woodward School was constructed on the town square.It included two years of high school.

In 1908 church leaders from St. George and Salt Lake City undertook plans for an academy like those in other Mormon communities.The Salt Lake authorities agreed to allocate $20,000 if the members of the St. George LDS Stake would raise $35,000 to build a college structure.The sacrifices of the people to build and equip the building have become legendary.That spirit of community contribution still serves as the inspiration to sustain the present institution.This story testifies that the College came about from the community's desire for learning and that drive is still fundamental.

On September 19, 1911, the College opened while the carpenters were still completing the building. Initially it was called the St. George Stake Academy (and later nicknamed Dixie Academy), but in 1916 the name became Dixie Normal College, in 1923, Dixie Junior College, in 1970 Dixie College, and in 2000, Dixie State College of Utah.Its initial 42 students partook of a curriculum which included Algebra, Domestic Art, Domestic Science, Economics, English, Geometry, Ancient and Modern History, Physiography, Physiology, Physics, Theology and Music.

ST. GEORGE, UTAH

HISTORY

Although settlers came to Washington County as early as 1852, St. George was settled in 1861. Mormon leader Brigham Young sent a group of pioneers to the far-reaching corner of the Territory of Utah to grow cotton and wine grapes and harvest silk for export to the Civil War-torn northern states. Today the cotton fields are gone, the wineries are closed and the silk industry has given way to modern, more prosperous businesses.

St. George, the county's largest city, lies along interstate 15 with a host of smaller communities that make up Utah's Dixie. The advantages of the county's position along one of the nation's key east-west routes between California and places such as Salt Lake City, Denver and Albuquerque is making Washington County one of the nation's fastest growing communities. The scenic area not only provides easy access to major markets of the western United States, it has become a destination point for countless people and businesses looking for a better way of life and more fruitful atmosphere for growth and prosperity.

From 1990 to 1995, Washington County grew a staggering 50 percent and St. George grew 61 percent, while the rest of the state tallied up a total growth rate of 16 percent.

By the end of the decade, the St. George - Zion National Park areas of Washington County were rated among the best communities in the country to retire by Rand McNalley, Prentice Hall, Money and the American Association of Retired People. As a result there was a large amount of construction of new homes in the Washington County area.

The unprecedented growth experienced in the county has not been limited to retirees, however. Young working families joined the migration to Utah's Dixie to establish one of the most stable and reliable work forces in the nation. They came for the climate, the scenic beauty, the family atmosphere and explosive job opportunities. Much of the growth is due to the area's competitive construction rates and low crime.

ART SELECTION COMMITTEE STATEMENT

The primary goals of the Health Sciences Facility are teaching, learning, and serving in order to mold compassionate caregivers, to provide quality practitioners, and to seek healing for all levels of humanity.These goals can be expressed artistically in this public space.

The art selection committee members are interested in integrating the purpose of the building with the concepts of the artwork.Solutions may depict the dynamic processes of function and change in life.The artwork may also seek to set a mood of restful contemplation, inspiration, or energy and invigoration.

There are opportunities for single, entire, and/or multiple sites. Highly visible areas are planned for inside and outside.There will be gathering areas and social areas that may provide opportunities for artwork as well.Space options include the following:

• The atrium, being planned as a gathering space and open to the second story
• An exterior wall at the main entry which could possibly extend an idea into the inside entry curved wall
• An interior curved entry wall
• An exterior space at the north entry
• An outdoor plaza on the east side of the building
• The northeast exposure has a curtain wall of windows

The committee is open to all media proposals and concepts.It is early enough in the process of designing the building that artwork could likely be incorporated into its design.

BUDGET

$100,000 has been approved by the Utah State Legislature to commission this public art work(s)  These funds are intended to cover all costs associated with the artist’s participation on the team, public art commission, travel and all related expenses, and honorariums for finalists.

SELECTION PROCESS AND SCHEDULE

The Selection Committee reviewed proposals, from which a short list of semi-finalists were selected and invited to interview with the committee. A small honorarium was extended to the finalists.The honorarium will be applied toward the commission amount for the artist(s) awarded the commission. Final selection(s) will be made from the semi-finalists.

The committee reserves the right to withhold, delay or re-issue the Request for Qualifications for this project.

ART SELECTION COMMITTEE