From staff reports For the past several years state legislative and agricultural industry leaders have supported the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine, its students and graduates, said Dr. Rosslyn Biggs, a veterinarian who is an Oklahoma State University Extension Service beef cattle specialist.
During the 2023 legislative session, Biggs related, the OSU Veterinary Medicine Authority (OSUVMA) was created in House Bill 2863 for the purposes of supporting the educational, research, and practice activities of the CVM.
The OSUVMA secures long-term support for clinical faculty, student training, and the veterinary teaching hospital, similar to how the OSU Medical Authority and the University Hospitals Authority support the state’s medical schools.
During this year’s legislative session, House Bill 3196, the Dr. Lee Denney Act – named for a Cushing veterinarian who served in the Legislature and previously was the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s State Director for Rural Development – was passed to provide financial support for students pursuing a veterinary medicine degree at OSU to practice in rural Oklahoma communities and receive training to meet the needs of livestock producers.
Preference for awards will be given to students who are focused on large-animal veterinary medicine, who are Oklahoma residents, and who agree to serve in an Oklahoma community that has a population no greater than 25,000, Biggs said.
HB 3196 also provides language for support of large-animal veterinarians currently practicing in similarly sized communities.
OSU is joining a new pilot program from the Farm Journal Foundation (FJF) to support veterinary students and early career veterinary graduates in their professional development and address the national shortage of rural, food-supply veterinarians.
The university is one of 10 schools participating in the Veterinary Workforce Solutions Program, Biggs said. That program supports veterinary students across a number of areas, including tackling student debt and financial planning, developing business management skills, and learning how to engage with rural communities.
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry is also collaborating with the FJF to assess Oklahoma’s unique challenges as well as mechanisms to support veterinarians, producers, and rural communities. Oklahoma is one of only three states participating in this initiative.
Data is being collected from veterinary and agricultural stakeholders, and the information will be analyzed to develop measures to support the veterinary workforce and community readiness.