Hospital renamed after founding dean

KNOXVILLE, TENN. - 3/9/06 - The University of Tennessee's veterinary teaching hospital has been renamed to honor Dr. W. W. Armistead, the institution's founding dean.

Now known as the Dr. W. W. Armistead Veterinary Teaching Hospital, a bronze plaque commemorates the veterinarian's role in the college's inception more than 30 years ago.

"This is the highlight of my career," Armistead says in a news release. "A remarkable group of individuals share the honor. The first student class and the first faculty set the tone for the college."

Armistead, a DVM graduate from Texas A&M University, served as dean for two veterinary institutions before he was retained by the state in 1973 as a consultant to develop a report on the need for a veterinary college in Tennessee. He's served as two-time president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, president of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges and was founding editor of the Journal of Veterinary Medical Education. He says today's graduates are a privileged group.

"In just my lifetime, veterinary medicine has been transformed from a quaint rural vocation to a sophisticated medical science, with implications for both human and animal health," he says.