The $350,000 donation is the largest regional commitment by the bank and will contribute to facility costs and program support.
The Texas Tech University School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM) in Amarillo received a $350,000 gift from Bank of America to build and support a new world-class school of veterinary medicine to address the region's growing shortage of veterinary resources.
The 185,000-square-foot, two-story facility currently under construction will enroll its first students later this year. Once fully implemented, the school is expected to accommodate more than 450 veterinary and graduate students. While the veterinary curriculum is firmly focused on general veterinary practice in rural and regional communities, the graduate program will produce scientists who provide solutions to the world's most pressing problems.
“Our facilities are truly world class,” said Guy Loneragan, SVM dean. “They will be a fantastic academic home for our students, staff and faculty. We are so thankful that our community, the region as a whole and Bank of America have made these facilities and our programs a reality. This gift will contribute to a premier space for students and support critical programs and recruitment efforts across the region.”
The SVM is estimated to generate more than $75 million in revenue annually for the region and create about 375 new jobs. Located in the region responsible for producing nearly one-quarter of the country's beef, the school's programs and research components will support sustainability efforts in the livestock industry. The school's unique geographic placement will enable it to serve as the closest veterinary school for students in five states that supports large-animal agriculture.
All face veterinary shortages.
“Amarillo is a very special community, and everyone here knows how important quality animal care is to our economy,” Amarillo Mayor Ginger Nelson said. “This school gives Amarillo a competitive advantage and opens the doorway to a wide array of opportunities for students, farmers, researchers and so many others.”
The SVM's mission can be distilled to supporting the veterinary service and educational needs of rural and regional communities, and to providing access to an affordable world-class education. To achieve this mission, the school is implementing a three-pronged strategy based on targeted admissions, curricular focus and experiential learning.
In its admissions process, the school is preferentially recruiting and admitting students with deep life experiences rooted in rural and regional communities across Texas and New Mexico. This includes many underserved communities with a substantial Latino population. This important part of the fabric of Texas has traditionally been underrepresented in veterinary medicine.
To meet its mission more effectively, the school is implementing programs to enhance cultural competency. These will inform approaches, for example, to more effectively recruit students in communities on Texas' southern border, refine the admissions process to identify students with tremendous potential but who might not have had the opportunity to attend pre-veterinary programs at larger comprehensive universities, and design educational models to help veterinary students develop Spanish competency to effectively communicate with clients or animal caregivers for whom English is a second language.
The school's cultural competency initiatives are funded in part by the Bank of America gift and the SVM Cultural Competency Council led by assistant professor Arlene Garcia and professor László Hunyadi.
“Texas Tech University's School of Veterinary Medicine will serve as a social and economic anchor for Amarillo, the region and our state,” said W. Ashley Allen, president of Bank of America in Amarillo. “The groundbreaking research and teaching on the animal and human interface will benefit all societies and animals' well-being. Our philanthropic investment will pay dividends for years to come, supporting economic mobility and bolstering rural jobs for the region.”
This anchor gift is Bank of America's largest gift in the region to date and comes as part of its focus on advancing economic mobility by supporting nonprofit organizations serving education, workforce, community development and basic needs.
About Texas Tech School of Veterinary Medicine
The Texas Tech University School of Veterinary Medicine was founded in 2018 to serve the veterinary needs of rural and regional communities, as well as provide access to affordable, world-class veterinary education. The school is implementing a bold and innovative approach to veterinary education that is built on three intentional strategies. These are to recruit and preferentially admit students with life experiences rooted in rural and regional communities, deliver a curriculum built specifically to address the veterinary needs of rural and regional communities, and provide exceptional real-world experiential learning in rural and regional communities. Texas Tech is delivering one of the most affordable veterinary programs in the country.
About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world's leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 66 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 4,300 retail financial centers, including approximately 2,800 lending centers, 2,600 financial centers with a Consumer Investment Financial Solutions Advisor and 2,000 business centers; approximately 16,800 ATMs; and award-winning digital banking with approximately 38 million active users, including approximately 29 million mobile users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and approximately 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
