Strategic Plan Update | January 2014
SVM
Prerequisite for Success

Dean Markel

Although not glamorous, Strategic Priority “0” is critical to the long-term success and excellence of the School of Veterinary Medicine. The initiatives underlying this priority include: 1) reviewing and optimizing the school’s administrative structure, and 2) focusing our energy on stabilizing and enhancing the school’s funding base from a variety of sources, which includes increasing our class size (from 80 to 87), tuition, and gift support from friends and alumni.

The school’s current administrative structure closely resembles what it looked like 30 years ago. It is certainly possible that our current structure is optimal for our future success, but I’ve asked Kristi Thorson and Ed Rodriguez to evaluate it and our resources to either confirm that structure or make recommendations on how to optimize it.

As you know, the school faced a long and successive series of base budget reductions over the past 10 years resulting in the loss of over 10 percent of our faculty lines and substantial reduction in staff and administrative support for our faculty, staff, and students. It is critical for the long-term success and viability of the school to reverse this trend so that the priorities and initiatives that the school has developed over the past seven months can be implemented.

As I’ve highlighted in the past, our current DVM program tuition is the cheapest in the Big Ten for both residents and non-residents and cheapest in the U.S. for our non-residents. In fact, our non-resident tuition is cheaper than the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s undergraduate non-resident tuition. Our proposal to the Board of Regents to incrementally increase our tuition to the median of the Big Ten was tabled, but I remain committed to supporting the campus in further discussions with the Regents in order to successfully implement this enhanced funding stream for the school.

As a reminder, a portion of the enhanced funding will go back to our current students to help lessen their debt burden. Combined with other efforts to raise scholarship funds, including a $1 million endowment gift we received last month, we will distribute more than $1 million annually to our students.

Last, but certainly equally important, the school will remain focused on increasing philanthropic support over the coming decade. We’ve successfully partnered with the UW-Madison campus to receive over $4 million of support for a variety of critical initiatives, including the remodeling of our solar panel area, the creation of a small animal isolation facility, and the expansion and remodeling of our pharmacy. We need to leverage this support in order to successfully carry out and fund a variety of educational, research, and clinical service opportunities in the coming years.

Strategic Plan Links

» Strategic Plan (web)
» Strategic Plan (print)
» Strategic Priorities and Initiatives Matrix


Important Links

» UW SVM
» UW Veterinary Care
» Give to SVM
» Message Archive


Upcoming Events

Fifth Annual Health Sciences Teaching Symposium
January 16, 2014
12:45 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Health Sciences Learning Center

Alumni Reception at the North American Veterinary Conference
January 19, 2014
7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Washington Room at Orlando World Center Marriott
Orlando, FL

All-SVM Gathering
February 7, 2014
4:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Veterinary Medicine Building
Second Floor Lounge


Check the SVM Calendar for other upcoming events and seminars.

Strategic Priority Zero
Initiatives that cut across all strategic priorities.

Executive Sponsor: Mark Markel

Initiative A
Review and optimize SVM administrative structure.

  • Support of department functions beginning summer 2013.
  • Review of administrative functions (HR, IT, Business Services, and Facilities) beginning summer 2013.
    Linked to Strategic Priority 2, Initiative F, "Additional Support for Research and Grants."

Initiative B
Enhance funding sources.

  • 2017 class size increase to be implemented beginning in 2013-14 academic year.

Initiative C
Implement comprehensive strategy to seek additional gift dollars over the next 10 years in support of the following:

  • Enhanced facilities, including a new building
  • Endowed faculty positions
  • Scholarships
  • Equipment needs
  • Unrestricted gifts
  • Campus-wide major gift initiatives that benefit the SVM

Dean Markel

Dean Markel

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UW School of Veterinary Medicine