Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 27, 1990 TAG: 9004270672
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL HOWES HIGHER EDUCATION WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
A tightening state budget and a legislative threat to a $10 million construction project had dimmed the prospects for the American Veterinary Medical Association's blessing, officials said Thursday.
But after plans to finish building the 320-student college were resuscitated last month by the General Assembly, officials said their confidence began to return.
"Full accreditation means you are now a member of the group," Sashi Mohanty, associate dean of the college's Maryland campus, said in an interview. There are 27 accredited veterinary colleges nationwide, all of which have met the standards for academics and facilities set by the association.
College and university officials hailed the news, saying it would dispel any lingering doubts about the school that opened in 1980. They said the association's decision - which must be reviewed in four years - likely would enlarge the applicant pool and bolster efforts to recruit faculty and raise money.
"It makes the future of the school certainly a lot more secure and it boosts the morale of faculty, students and staff," said Lud Eng, a professor of veterinary medicine and incoming president of Tech's Faculty Senate.
Dean Peter Eyre agreed. "Faculty and students are elated because they've worked under a cloud for so long," he said. "We can relax a little bit. The big thing it means is that it removes all the vestiges of uncertainty about the college."
Two years ago, the state Council of Higher Education issued a report lambasting the regional college, saying the joint operation envisioned in 1980 had failed to materialize. "The vet school should be closed after [June] 1992 if a truly joint program is not in place," the report said.
Since then, Tech and Maryland officials have worked furiously to repair relations with their legislatures and to fashion a workable academic agreement, more fully incorporating the university and faculty in College Park, Md.
When told by a reporter late Thursday of the accreditation, state council Director Gordon Davies responded, "Well, good. How 'bout that?
"I'm delighted. It's been a long haul. It shows their planning has paid off and the state commitment is good," he said. "We had a period there where [the school's relationship with the council] wasn't awfully good. We had to sort out who did what and what kind of school it was going to be."
Davies continued: "I think part of the difficulty then was the sense that it was going to be easy" to create the school. "And it isn't. It takes some time."
For the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, it took 10 years, about one year longer than usual, officials said.
"I am sure that you understand how significant this event is in the life of the college. It would be difficult to imagine a better 10th birthday recognition," Eyre wrote in a memorandum to faculty, staff and students.
The dean, on his way to lunch Wednesday, received a call from the association informing him of its decision and asking him to tell President James McComas.
"We are very proud of the college and those who have worked so hard over the past 10 years to help it achieve this recognition," McComas said in a statement. "It's a further indication of the secure future of the veterinary college."
The veterinary association awarded the college "limited" accreditation in 1984, an interim status generally given to developing institutions that have not yet met all the "essentials" of a mature institution.
Because of the stalled building program and friction between Virginia and Maryland, among other things, the panel extended the limited status after an interim visit in 1986. The team returned for another look last fall.
by CNB