Tenn. veterinary school placed on limited accreditation

KNOXVILLE, TENN. — The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine has been moved from full to limited accreditation for the next two years, which means it did not meet at least two of the 11 accreditation standards when reviewed by the Council on Education (COE).

Accreditation reports are confidential, although colleges can choose to share information from evaluations.

Dr. Jim Thompson, dean of the veterinary college since last October, says deficiencies within the school's large-animal hospital, which is more than 30 years old, lowered the accreditation.

"We have an urgent need to upgrade our large-animal facility," Thompson says.

The hospital has had no major updates or infrastructure work since it opened in the 1970s.

An assessment shows a $20.9 million investment is needed to make the necessary upgrades for the hospital, which provides medical and surgical services, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, bovine hoof care and metabolic disease treatment to animals across the state.

The college has two years to fix these weaknesses before the next COE evaluation, and Thompson says "resolving this challenge is our No. 1 goal."

The college is seeking donors and working with the state Legislature to secure funding, according to a spokeswoman.

The COE also reviewed the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, which was granted full accreditation for seven years. It had full accreditation prior to the review.

A veterinary program can achieve full accreditation by meeting 11 standards: organization, finances, physical facilities and equipment, clinical resources, library and information resources, students, admission, faculty, curriculum, research and outcomes assessment.

Accreditation can be for up to seven years if a school is in full compliance.

The University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine was granted provisional accreditation for five years, and will move forward with a required comprehensive site visit this fall.

The COE also will do a site visit to Mexico's national veterinary and zoological school this year.