The Arizona Board of Regents has approved a one-time funding request of $3 million would make possible the planning of an Arizona Veterinary Medical Education program. Next, the state Legislature will consider the request.
The two departments’ administrative functions would be converged. The new school is expected to provide improved degree opportunities as well as greater opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration in the growing fields of animal production, food safety, integrated biomedicine and bioinformatics, among others. Plans for the school are still being finalized. The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences has been a leader in education in the animal and veterinary sciences as well as in microbiology since the department of animal husbandry was founded in 1915, followed by the department of veterinary science in 1938. Currently, CALS offers undergraduate degree programs that prepare many students for medical or veterinary school.
“Jobs in biotechnology, the animal industries and veterinary medicine are growing, particularly in Arizona,” said CALS Vice Provost and Dean Shane Burgess. “Our students deserve a 21st-century education that lets them gain hands-on experience in the lab and in the field. The School of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences allows our students to take better advantage of traditional and new, expanding job markets.”
Read more of this story by Bethany Rutledge, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences | September 28, 2012
http://uanews.org/story/ua-plans-new-school-animal-and-comparative-biomedical-sciences