Hofstra University President Stuart Rabinowitz announced Tuesday that the school is expanding its partnership with Northwell Health to launch an undergraduate nursing program.

Rabinowitz says the program is meant to address the critical shortage of nurses and meet the demand for high-quality community-based care.

The new Bachelor of Science in nursing will enroll its first students in fall of 2021.

The Hofstra Northwell School of Graduate Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies, which opened in 2015, will now be known as the Hofstra Northwell School of Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies.

Rabinowitz also announced that the university will soon begin construction of a 70,000-square-foot science and innovation center with state-of-the-art laboratories, classrooms and learning spaces to accommodate the expanding academic programs.

The new center will cost $60 million.