NOTICE: Due to the closure of the MDACC South Campus parking lot, there currently is, and will continue to be a shortage of parking on South Campus until their new garage is complete in the Summer of 2026. Unfortunately, this shortage has created a situation where patients at SOD and BBS are unable to find parking when large events occur at the Cooley Center during the week. Therefore, until the new garage is complete and open for business, future events at the Cooley Center will be limited to 100 people Monday - Thursday during normal business hours.
The Denton A. Cooley, MD and Ralph C. Cooley, DDS University Life Center (Cooley Center) serves as a multi-purpose venue for UTHealth faculty, students, and staff, the institutions of the Texas Medical Center, and the Houston community at large. The center is available for university gatherings, professional conferences, continuing education courses, distance learning programs, and other special events related to the university's mission.
The Cooley Center is located in the Texas Medical Center in UTHealth’s South Campus Research Park Complex, adjacent to the Behavioral and Biomedical Sciences Building and the UTHealth School of Dentistry. The 14,000-square-foot center has a modular design that allows for a variety of events and audiences. In its largest configuration, the center can serve as a standing reception area for 600, a seated auditorium for 400, or a banquet hall for 220. The center can also be configured into a range of smaller spaces to accommodate seminars, lectures, and other meetings.
The Cooley Center offers state-of-the-art technology, including wireless connectivity, advanced video and sound systems, teleconferencing and distance learning capabilities, and on-site technology support. Other features include a warming kitchen for catering services, convenient parking, a covered outdoor patio and an open landscaped courtyard.
The conference center is named in honor of the renowned heart surgeon Denton A. Cooley, MD, surgeon-in-chief, founder and president emeritus of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, and his father, Ralph C. Cooley, DDS, who was a 1908 alumnus of the Dental School. In keeping with the vision and generosity of the Cooley family, UTHealth is committed to utilizing this space to support the enrichment of university life, facilitate collaboration within the Texas Medical Center, and promote the health sciences.
