Student Affairs : Student Health Center : About Us : History

History

The Student Health Center at San Jose State University was established in 1912. It was first called the Edwin Markham Health Cottage which was later renamed McFadden Health Cottage, Normal School Teachers College & State College. The organizer and first director was Elizabeth McFadden, professor of Health and Hygiene. By 1949, the Health Service had a fifteen-bed infirmary and students who were confined there received bed, food and the services of a registered nurse and one physician. In 1954, there were 6,687 full-time students on campus and fourteen Health Center staff. Cost of the Health Service in 1953-54 totaled $63,577 with students paying a fee of $2.00. Legislation was pending to increase annual student fees to $5.00 to provide one physician per 1000 instead of 1 per 2000 and additional nursing staff and technician help.

Objectives in 1956 were to enlarge the Health Service to include the mental as well as the physical well-being with an emphasis on prevention rather than treatment of sickness.

There were 10,240 students enrolled at San Jose State University in 1957. Funds of $1,176,300 were budgeted for a new Health Building. On October 8, 1959, the Student Health Center moved into their new facility, its present day location. The Student Health Center occupies the first two floors of the four-story building.

The SHC is governed by the California State University Board of Trustees. It is mandated to provide basic medical services at little or no cost and augmented services for which nominal fees may be charged. By the late 1980s, campus enrollment increased to 30,000 students.

During the summer of 1994, the SHC was made an auxiliary department. All general fund support was eliminated and replaced by a $55.00 per semester mandatory health fee. This made the SHC's funding more secure. A strategic planning task force was formed to set long-term goals.

In the spring semester of 2000, a referendum was passed to increase the mandatory health fee from $55 to $61 per semester with incremental increases of 2.5% from fall 2001 to spring 2009.  This provides financial stability to the Student Health Center.

The SHC continues to provide low-cost outpatient medical, health education, and some mental health services to the SJSU student body of 27,000 students. For many of the SJSU economically disadvantaged students, the SHC is the only source of primary health care. As an urban, commuter university, SJSU serves an ethnically