On Friday, December 5, 2025, Pepperdine University celebrated its expansion into healthcare education with a ribbon cutting ceremony commemorating the institution’s sixth school—the College
of Health Sciences—as well as a partnership with HCA Healthcare, which features a
multimillion-dollar investment in the University’s School of Nursing.
Throughout the ceremony, key leaders from Pepperdine and HCA’s Los Robles Health System
offered remarks honoring the occasion and envisioning the impact the school and partnership
will have on Southern California and throughout the nation.
“With our launch this fall, Pepperdine joins the prestigious list of American universities
committed to serving the common good through the health sciences,” said Jay Brewster,
the University’s provost and chief academic officer. “We are directed to love our
neighbors as ourselves, guided by the example of Jesus, which inspires our view of
healthcare as a ministry and calling. Today, our ability to carry out this noble mission
is enriched through the addition of Pepperdine’s College of Health Science.”
HCA Healthcare’s transformational gift will support Pepperdine’s mission to equip
nursing students with an exceptional healthcare education. The investment will also
directly aid the growing healthcare needs of the Los Angeles and Ventura County regions
as graduates begin to work at area hospitals, urgent care centers, and other clinics.
Through this new partnership, HCA Healthcare and Pepperdine University’s College of
Health Sciences launch a collaborative effort to address a national nursing shortage
and prepare future health leaders.
“We are here to cut ribbons, but more importantly, we are here to celebrate indelible
bonds of greater purpose,” said Dee Anna Smith (’86), chair of the Pepperdine Board
of Regents and CEO of Sarah Cannon, HCA Healthcare’s Cancer Institute. “Through this
collaboration, our students will learn how to care for patients in their daily work
and how to serve people with their whole lives. This is a movement for us—and one
that will bear fruit in our local communities, across the nation, and around the world
for years to come.”
Pepperdine officially opened its College of Health Science in August. Immediately,
it welcomed a cohort of 93 students between its School of Speech-Language Pathology and School of Nursing. As part of their curriculum and budding partnership, nursing students will have the
opportunity to complete clinical rotations at HCA Healthcare’s Los Robles Regional
Medical Center in Thousand Oaks, California.
“I’m thrilled to see Pepperdine’s nursing program and College of Health Science come
to fruition because of this nearly $5 million gift,” stated Phil Buttell, CEO of Los
Robles Health System. “I can truly say it is a career highlight for me since it focuses
on two of my biggest passions: healthcare and inspiring future generations of healthcare
leaders.”
The ribbon-cutting ceremony was hosted at Pepperdine’s newly renovated Calabasas campus. This 30,000 square-foot facility holds five high-fidelity simulation labs including
an operating room and a three-bed emergency room. Additionally, the space includes
welcoming third spaces such as a library, multiple private study rooms, and an atrium
named in honor HCA Healthcare, where students can comfortably study.
“While we celebrate the launch of the College of Health Science, what makes today
especially meaningful and significant is the unveiling of our partnership with HCA
Healthcare and the Los Robles Health System,” said Michael Feltner, the founding dean
of Pepperdine’s College of Health Sciences. “Today we begin a synergistic partnership
that combines the educational and scholarly excellence of Pepperdine with the clinical
and medical expertise of HCA to further our respective missions, collaboratively develop
the next generations of healthcare nurses, workers, and leaders, and serve the healthcare
needs of our communities and the world.”
The College of Health Science is now accepting applications for the upcoming semesters in the programs of Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN),
Entry Level Master of Science, Clinical Nurse Leader (ELM-CNL), and Master of Speech-Language
Pathology (MS-SLP).