A Texas Tech University System has proposed development of a veterinary school offering a doctoral program in Amarillo, citing student demand and industry needs in West Texas.
The proposal announced Friday, however, has drawn the objection of the Texas A&M University System, which offers the state's exclusive doctoral program in veterinary medicine.
In a statement, Tech System Chancellor Robert Duncan cited the "deep-rooted history" of West Texas "with agriculture and ranching." Texas, the nation's leading cattle producer, has more than 248,000 ranches and farms, the most of any state in the nation.
The program would break the monopoly Texas A&M University holds on Texas veterinary doctorates. A&M System Chancellor John Sharp says state higher education planners and Board and the Legislature have rejected Tech DVM proposals for 40 years.
