Tufts Vet School May Open in 1979; 2000 Want to Apply

Although the Tufts University Board of Trustees will not decide whether to approve the construction of a veterinary school until mid-winter, the university has already received more than 2000 requests for applications to the school, Dr. Thomas Murnane, an assistant to the the president of Tufts who heads the veterinary school planning effort at Tufts, said yesterday.

If the school is approved, the first 35 students could begin classes there as early as July 1979, Murnane said, adding that the size of the school would gradually increase to 100 students.

The board of trustees will decide what type of veterinary facilities are feasible for the university from estimates an accounting firm is preparing on the costs of construction and labor.

One proposal involves setting up the first two years of a veterinary program at Tufts's medical center in Boston and building a large-animal facility in Grafton, Mass. for later clinical work.

Funds for construction of the veterinary school buildings would come from a $10 million federal grant made last spring and from private donations, Murnane said yesterday. "We are not asking the states for a dime," he added.

The state of Massachusetts now contracts with the University of Pennsylvania and Cornell University for a few positions in their veterinary schools for Massachusetts students each year.

New England has had no veterinary schools for 30 years.