Construction Starts On Baylor College Of Medicine's 503K SF Medical Education Tower

Eight decades ago, when Baylor College of Medicine first established itself in Texas Medical Center, medical knowledge doubled every 50 years. Today, medical knowledge doubles every 73 days, and Baylor College of Medicine is bursting at the seams as it races to keep up.

To that end, the college is adding a 503K SF, 11-story medical education and research building to its campus. The Lillie and Roy Cullen Tower will be the first building of Baylor’s planned Health Sciences Park. It is expected to open in 2026.

The project is adjacent to TMC’s Helix Park, a 37-acre project that will support healthcare, life sciences and other business. The Cullen Tower will be on Butler Boulevard, in proximity to the other Baylor medical buildings within TMC. 

The new tower will be a medical education facility for Baylor College of Medicine and a health science professional school, said Bob Pulito, president emeritus and principal at SLAM Collaborative and lead architect for the project.

“It’s probably one of the largest medical education facilities in the country right now,” Pulito said at a Wednesday event celebrating the kickoff of construction. “It will set a new benchmark for medical education.” 

It will also be the most technologically advanced medical education building in the nation, according to Dr. Paul Klotman, president, CEO and executive dean of the college. 

“I have been to the top 20 medical schools' educational buildings, and nothing comes close to this in terms of all the things you need for modern-day medical school learning,” Klotman said at the event.

Educational features include a 35K SF simulation lab that will simulate exams, labs and other situations to train medical professionals, Pulito said. 

Other building features include a 500-seat classroom and event center, small-group and studio classrooms, dedicated space for big data analytics, lecture halls and a student wellness center. The 11th floor will house the new offices of Baylor executive leadership, Pulito said.

One design feature Pulito said he is especially excited about is a floating courtyard on the second level above an atrium, which sweeps up to connect the base of the building to the tower. That will be the heart of the facility, he said.

The tower is named for Roy and Lillie Cullen, Houston-based philanthropists who were also the namesake for the circa 1947 Baylor College of Medicine Roy and Lillie Cullen Building at Texas Medical Center, now a Recorded Texas Historical Landmark. That was Baylor’s first permanent education building, and the Cullens were instrumental in establishing the Texas Medical Center, according to a news release. 

The Cullen Foundation, The Cullen Trust for Health Care and The Cullen Trust for Higher Education contributed a combined $30M to build the new Cullen Tower. The Cullen Tower has already received more than $100M in donations, covering more than 65% of the $150M philanthropic goal for the project.

The construction manager for the project is Linbeck Group. The project manager is JLL.