The School of Veterinary Medicine raised $41 million for their new building with a gift from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, allowing them to double the size of the animal hospital, as well as significantly increase teaching and research space.
Dean of the School of Veterinary Medicine Mark Markel spoke about his excitement for the renovation and its role in maintaining the school’s reputation as a world leader in veterinary education.
“We want to do whatever we can to help both the community of Wisconsin and their animals,” Markel said.
The building will allow class size to increase by nearly 20 percent, aiming to provide more class space to focus on research of infectious diseases.
“We’re severely under-resourced in both space and quality of space,” Markel said. “We were built 35 years ago, long before there were CT scanners and MRI equipment. We have an MRI unit in the back of the school in a trailer, where we have to wheel out dogs in the middle of the winter just to get a scan.”
Along with the $38 million raised, including a $15 million donation from WARF, the project received a $90 million bond from the state.
The school still needs to raise about $8 million to pay for new equipment — however, the donation from WARF allowed them to make plans to start construction in 2021.
“We’re really staying focused on serving the citizens of the state of Wisconsin,” Markel said. “It will position the school to lead the nation in all that it does in veterinary medicine for both humans and animals.”
Gina Musso is a Senior Staff Writer at The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as College News Editor and Features Editor, focusing coverage around student government, campus COVID updates and in-depth reporting. Follow her on Twitter @gina__musso.
