Penn Vet Students Lobby Harrisburg to "Save the School"
Thursday, June 18, 2009
State budget cuts inspire current veterinary students to deliver letters to Commonwealth legislators
PHILADELPHIA, PA—In an effort dubbed the “SOS Campaign” (Save Our School), students of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine launched a letter-writing effort and traveled from Philadelphia to Harrisburg Tuesday morning with almost 100 letters from students, staff, alumni and friends, to hand deliver to Pennsylvania legislators. The goal is to restore previous appropriations from the Commonwealth to the School.
Penn Veterinary Medicine, one of 28 veterinary schools in the United States, continues to face severe budgetary challenges related in part to the proposed 10 percent cut in appropriations by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to the School for Fiscal Year 2010. As the only veterinary school in the Commonwealth, the School depends on the Commonwealth for 35 percent of its funding. Budgets for Fiscal Year 2010 are still being discussed in Harrisburg, with the final Commonwealth budget to be formalized June 30, 2009.
“As veterinary students we are all determined and passionate about this profession, however the reality of our current economic situation is evident,” said Dawn Fiedorczyk, a fourth-year student active in the School’s student government. “We must be proactive leaders now during a difficult economic time, to ensure our profession thrives in the future.” Fiedorczyk, V'10 and Alex Koenigstein, V'10, led the student effort.
Students traveled first to the Farm Bureau for a briefing on Tuesday morning, then were escorted by representatives of the Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association to the Capital to meet with legislators and passed out information packets. Students discussed the student debt-to-income ratio and the shortage of veterinarians in Pennsylvania, as well as the critical connection between veterinary education and the economic impact on the Commonwealth. With only 86,000 veterinarians in the United States and 2600 graduates yearly -- approximately 115 from Penn Vet -- there already remains a shortage of veterinarians in Pennsylvania and throughout the nation. Approximately 60 percent of Pennsylvania’s current practicing veterinarians attended the School of Veterinary Medicine.)
“Our students take great pride and commitment in our school,” said Joan C. Hendricks, the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine at Penn. “This effort constructively and respectfully exemplifies the passion of the students in responding to the budget issues we are facing. “The impact of this proposed cut remains significant, as the state funds that Penn Vet receives are essential to educate the commonwealth’s next generation of veterinarians, and to support Pennsylvania’s economically important agricultural and horse racing industries and much-needed clinical services.”
THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL OF VETERINARY MEDICINE
Penn’s School of Veterinary Medicine is one of the world’s premier veterinary schools. Founded in 1884, the School was built on the concept of Many Species, One MedicineTM. The birthplace of veterinary specialties, the School serves a distinctly diverse array of animal patients, from pets to horses to farm animals at our two campuses. In Philadelphia, on Penn’s campus, are the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital for companion animals, as well as classrooms, laboratories and the School’s administrative offices. The large-animal facility, New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square, Pa., encompasses hospital facilities for the care of horses and food animals as well as diagnostic laboratories serving the agriculture industry. The School has successfully integrated scholarship and scientific discovery with all aspects of veterinary medical education.
Based on the 2006 “Economics and Social Impact Report” by consulting firm TrippUmbach, Penn Veterinary School contributed over $196 million in business volume impact to the Pennsylvania economy, $50 million of which was generated by the New Bolton Center, and an additional $10 million in state government revenue impact. The New Bolton Center was responsible for almost $2.7 million of the school’s total state government impact.
Penn's School of Veterinary Medicine is one of the world's premier veterinary schools. Founded in 1884, the School was built on the concept of Many Species, One Medicine™. The birthplace of veterinary specialties, the School serves a distinctly diverse array of animal patients, from pets to horses to farm animals at our two campuses. In Philadelphia, on Penn's campus, are the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital for companion animals, as well as classrooms, laboratories and the School's administrative offices. The large-animal facility, New Bolton Center, in Kennett Square, Pa., encompasses hospital facilities for the care of horses and food animals as well as diagnostic laboratories serving the agriculture industry. The School has successfully integrated scholarship and scientific discovery with all aspects of veterinary medical education.
Visit us on-line at www.vet.upenn.edu