Campaign Update: The Power of Penn Vet

Where We Are Headed

Last year, Penn Vet launched The Power of Penn Vet, a $130 million campaign falling under the University’s larger $4.1 billion The Power of Penn campaign.

With four priorities, The Power of Penn Vet’s goal is to help the School maintain its position as a leader in veterinary medicine and major force in defining the field’s future:

Training New Generations of Veterinarians

We will empower skilled, compassionate veterinarians, ramping up access and opportunity through increased financial awards and relief for students and new and diverse dual degree programs that train a Different Kind of Veterinarian.

Reinventing Academic Programs

We will revolutionize academic programs to prepare new veterinarians for an intense pace of discovery and care. By redesigning our core curriculum, offering increased options for individualized study and expanded opportunities for the VMD-PhD program, and launching new certificate and master’s programs, we will ready our graduates for traditional and nontraditional careers.

Transforming Clinical Care

We will upgrade our facilities for excellence. To uphold our reputation for excellent and compassionate care, we will unveil a new Emergency & Critical Care Center (ECCC) at Ryan Hospital and a new Advanced Imaging and Translational Center (AITC) at New Bolton Center. We will also offer unique occasions for skills-based learning, including a new Clinical Skills Laboratory in Philadelphia and Student Simulation and Skills Learning Center in Kennett Square.

Impacting the World

We will enable global breakthroughs with the growing Penn Vet Cancer Center, expanded centers—like the Center for Host-Microbial Interactions and Center for Animal Health and Productivity—greater opportunities for experiential learning, and new initiatives to advance the veterinary profession worldwide.

Cutting-Edge Science Moves to the Clinic to Help Fight Cancer

Penn Vet has long been a powerhouse both scientifically and clinically. But the launch of the Penn Vet Cancer Center (PVCC) last year is further bolstering those strengths in the areas of cancer research and care. A year after its launch, the PVCC is solidifying the translational science pipeline, connecting basic scientists to the clinic and vice versa, to transform veterinary cancer care. Read the rest of our story here...

The Richard Lichter Emergency Room at Ryan Hospital

In February, Penn Vet completed construction on Ryan Hospital’s new emergency room. The project was generously funded by Richard Lichter, a member of Penn Vet’s Board of Overseers, and co-chair of The Power of Penn Vet Campaign. His gift was made in memory of his beloved dog, Cosette. The five-month undertaking almost triples the amount of clinical space than the former emergency room. The 2,000 square foot facility now includes designated areas for canine and feline patients. The Richard Lichter Emergency Room gives Penn Vet an opportunity to elevate animal care in a significant way. Lichter’s gift also names the future emergency room canine lobby, to be built alongside the emergency room feline lobby.

The emergency room expansion represents the first phase of a $14 million investment in our commitment to cutting-edge emergency and critical care for our patients, and their families. Future phases of the multi-phased project include enhancements to Cardiology, Radiology, as well as a state-of-the-art Emergency and Critical Care Center.

A future surgical suite is also funded through the generosity of Helen Shinners.

Advanced Imaging and Translational Center (AITC) at New Bolton Center

In 2016, Penn Vet entered the frontlines of a revolution in imaging, becoming the first veterinary teaching hospital to install a robotics-controlled imaging system for use with standing horses. Today, this technology has evolved to become the centerpiece of New Bolton Center’s planned Advanced Imaging and Translational Center (AITC), a project supported by The Power of Penn Vet.

Anchoring the AITC will be a new intra-operative, robotic computed tomography (CT) system that advances clinical diagnosis, surgical guidance, and evaluation of anatomical
areas in ways never before possible. Developed specifically for New Bolton Center, the device will render extraordinarily detailed images, allowing researchers to accelerate
developments and potential applications in human medicine. A state-of-the-art operating room, patient preparation area, and a new high-field MRI unit—one of the only ones of its kind on the East Coast—are also planned.

As of publication, the $6.5 million center is nearly halfway funded, with $2.5 million committed.