Rocky Vista University announced plans last week (January 11) to open a new medical college in Billings.
YPR’s Orlinda Worthington has details on what would be the state’s first school of veterinary medicine.
Rocky Vista University admitted its first class of osteopathic medicine students in the summer of 2023. With that campus already in place, the school felt Billings would be the perfect location for a veterinary school.
Dr. Bob Murtaugh the Founding Dean for the proposed College of Veterinary Medicine. He says the school will offer a compressed program that's shorter than the standard four years for completion.
Murtaugh says that offers the potential of helping to solve the critical veterinary care shortage in Montana and the Mountain West region.
“We're going to do three years where there's no summers off in between, so that'll advantage our students to get into the job market sooner and limit their student debt. It’s not a unique model, but it's a relatively new model in our profession,” Murtaugh said.
Big Sky Economic Development issued a statement saying they anticipate that the direct economic impact stemming from the construction of this college will surpass 60-million dollars annually, with the employment of 61 full-time administration, staff, faculty, and the associated economic advantages.
The program is still in the accreditation process. Once approved, a veterinary medicine building will be constructed next to the university’s existing campus on Billings’ west end.
There is currently no other veterinary school within 400 miles of Billings.