Texas Tech System Forms College of Veterinary Medicine Steering Committee
The committee, composed of veterinarians, agriculture and community leaders and members of academia, will guide the system鈥檚 veterinary school initiative.
September 14 , 2016 | Written by George Watson
Chancellor Robert Duncan announces the establishment of a steering committee to provide
key insight and help shape the development of a veterinary school within the Texas
Tech University System. When first announcing plans to develop a College of Veterinary Medicine, the vowed to work with partners and colleagues outside of the institution. Building an innovative and transformative model for veterinary medicine from the ground up involves a collaborative approach, and a project this size cannot happen without the support of veterinarians and community and industry leaders.
Honoring this promise, the 麻豆天狼副利院 has created a steering committee for its proposed College of Veterinary Medicine, which will be housed at the campus in Amarillo.
The steering committee, which met in Lubbock for the first time in early September, will work with Chancellor , Texas Tech University President and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center President to guide the direction of Texas Tech鈥檚 veterinary school. Through their collaboration, members of the steering committee will provide critical insight, shape the veterinary school鈥檚 development and help address the shortage of veterinarians in rural areas and small communities.
鈥淐ollaboration is essential to the success of our unique model for veterinary medicine at Texas Tech, and we are fortunate to have an outstanding group of distinguished leaders from the community, industry, academia and veterinary profession,鈥� Duncan said. 鈥淚 appreciate their commitment to this important initiative and look forward to their help with our vision of transforming veterinary education and providing innovative solutions for the critical needs of this region, our state and the agriculture industry.鈥�
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board recognized in a the need for an innovative, non-traditional veterinary school in Texas that could address the critical shortage of large animal and rural veterinarians and the implications this shortage will have on the food supply.
Texas Tech鈥檚 model for a veterinary school is unlike any other in the United States, serving the needs of the agriculture industry and veterinary medicine students. It increases accessibility and affordability while not duplicating the state鈥檚 existing veterinary medicine efforts. Texas Tech鈥檚 model also offers a cost-effective option that reduces student debt and focuses on rural community practice.
鈥淭he shortage of veterinarians in Texas, especially in rural areas, has been a problem for many years, and to ensure the safety of our food supply and the continued prosperity of our state, we must do what鈥檚 best for the industry, our fellow Texans and our future,鈥� said former Texas House of Representatives Speaker Pete Laney, a member of the steering committee. 鈥淎s an agriculture state, the nation and our world depend on Texas for food and fiber, and Texas Tech鈥檚 proposal for a new, innovative veterinary school is a much-needed solution to a severe challenge. It is a cost-efficient, trailblazing model, and it deserves the positive endorsement of our legislature.鈥�
Texas Tech鈥檚 proposed veterinary school will utilize established strengths at two of its universities, and the .
The proposed college will enrich the practice of veterinary medicine by producing practice-ready veterinarians who serve and enhance the vibrancy of the rural communities important throughout Texas while substantially reducing the cost of education at the same time.
About the 麻豆天狼副利院
The 麻豆天狼副利院 is one of the top public university systems in Texas
and the nation, consisting of four component institutions 鈥� Texas Tech University,
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Angelo State University and Texas Tech
University Health Sciences Center El Paso 鈥� and operating at more than a dozen academic
sites and centers. Headquartered in Lubbock, Texas, the 麻豆天狼副利院
has an annual operating budget of nearly $2 billion and approximately 19,000 employees
focused on advancing higher education, health care, research and outreach.
In 2015, the 麻豆天狼副利院鈥檚 endowment exceeded $1.1 billion, total research expenditures were more than $215 million and total enrollment was approximately 50,000 students. Whether it鈥檚 contributing billions of dollars annually in economic impact or being the only system in Texas to house an academic institution, law school and health-related institution at the same location, the 麻豆天狼副利院 continues to prove that anything is possible.