Last week, the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University and WellSpan Health formalized an agreement that will establish a new regional campus for Temple’s medical school to be located in York County, Pennsylvania. The agreement comes after the two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to explore the opportunity this past summer. 

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Temple to partner with a renowned healthcare provider to help educate a new group of medical professionals who are committed to making a difference through their care, research and education,” said Temple President John Fry. “This new campus will ultimately lead to improved health outcomes in York County and across the commonwealth, and we are delighted to partner with WellSpan to bring a Temple education to a new part of Pennsylvania.” 

The agreement is a significant step in enhancing the pipeline of future WellSpan physicians across the health system and throughout central Pennsylvania communities, as this will be the first academic medical school to reside in York County. Medical students there will receive the same world-class education that is the hallmark of Katz, along with unparalleled new opportunities to learn and grow. The first class of approximately 40 students at the new regional campus is expected to begin their studies in August 2027 and graduate in May 2031. 

“We’re excited to collaborate with Temple University on this important effort to train the next generation of expert physicians and team members close to home,” said Anthony Aquilina, executive vice president and chief physician executive at WellSpan Health. “This program will have a direct benefit to our patients and the high-quality care we offer, complementing the other educational opportunities we’ve recently announced to stay ahead of the curve in addressing the nationwide shortage of healthcare professionals.”   

The proposed location of the campus will be in East York at 3350 Whiteford Road, which is currently a WellSpan administrative building. WellSpan York Hospital will be home to the initial clinical site for the school, with the ability to utilize all WellSpan Health hospitals and ambulatory sites throughout the learning experience. 

“This affiliation marks an exciting step forward in broadening medical education opportunities for students while strengthening the physician pipeline for Pennsylvania. We are deeply committed to training the next generation of physicians to serve our communities with compassion, skill and innovation. Through our partnership with WellSpan Health, we are building a strong foundation for the future of healthcare," said Amy J. Goldberg, the Marjorie Katz Dean of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine. 

The new school further enhances the footprint of the Katz School of Medicine, which currently enrolls 880 medical students at the main Health Sciences Center campus in North Philadelphia and St. Luke’s University Health Network campus in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. 

As for WellSpan, expanded residency programs and a new school of nursing in York through an affiliation with Jersey College are providing additional educational opportunities as well. 

Later this spring, Katz and WellSpan will hold a special event to celebrate the addition of the new York campus. Details are still being finalized, and more information will be shared soon. 

To learn more about WellSpan’s educational opportunities, visit joinwellspan.org. More information on the Katz School of Medicine can be found here. Katz is also part of Temple Health.