A $500,000 gift donated to the University of Wisconsin Nursing School will assist in constructing a state-of-the art building that will afford nursing students the opportunity to train with the newest technology and gain clinic and patient care experience before entering the work force.

Barbara D. and M. Keith Weikel donated the money to the building project — to be located on the corner of Highland Street and Observatory Drive — which will fund a laboratory named the Barbara D. Weikel Clinical Practice Laboratory.

Barbara Weikel worked as a nurse at the UW Hospital while her husband attended graduate school, and she said their background inspired them to contribute to the nursing school.

“Madison will always be close to our heart,” Weikel said. “We love the university, and … we’re happy to help.”

The majority of the laboratory will be a simulated care environment, School of Nursing Dean Katharyn May said. The laboratory will be comprised of simulated hospital rooms and clinic care settings, and it will allow nursing students to practice assessments and procedures on lifelike manikins before practicing on actual people.

“These simulations will [help students] learn how to function in a clinical environment in a safe way,” May added.

May said she believes this building will give the nursing students a home and provide them with a new sense of camaraderie.

In addition to improving students’ experiences, May added the laboratory would provide nursing students with the opportunity to improve the quality of life for those outside the building.

It was also recently announced the architectural engineering firm Kahler Slater would be providing programming and the design for the new nursing school building, Kahler Slater Lead Design Principal Larry Schnuck said.

The building will include student learning space, research space, accommodations for technologically advanced nursing, social spaces, faculty offices and a large auditorium, Schnuck said

He said he thinks the building, which is projected to be around 160,000 square feet and have a project cost of about $52 million, will add to the already strong reputation and ranking of the school of nursing.

Schnuck said the building is being designed to balance the needs and desires of the school of nursing and to help transform nursing education both now and into the future.

“[The goal for this building is to] seamlessly integrate technology which continues to change and evolve… and create an environment that provides flexibility which will help [the school] adapt to new things that come online, new learning, and new teaching methodologies,” Schnuck added.

May said one of the biggest challenges facing the project right now is raising the private funds needed to continue to push ahead with the project.

“We still need to raise about $5 million,” May said “But we’re confident we’ll get there.”

May added if the fundraising is completed as scheduled, construction will begin in fall of 2011 and will be completed by fall of 2013.