Rowan University marked a historic milestone on Thursday, Aug. 28, hosting the inaugural stethoscope ceremony for the new Shreiber School of Veterinary Medicine.

The new school is the first of its kind within the state of New Jersey. The ceremony symbolized the beginning of the students’ doctoral journey and their commitment to compassionate care for animals in underserved communities. 

Held in Pfleeger Concert Hall, the event welcomed 75 students from 16 states across the country, including 40 from within New Jersey. Hundreds of family members, friends, faculty members, and university leaders also gathered at the ceremony. Of the inaugural cohort, 61 were women, which is reflective of the growing diversity within the veterinary medical field.

The Shreiber School was established with a $30 million gift from philanthropists Gerald and Melanie Shreiber, who were also in attendance at the ceremony. The Shreibers also surprised in-state students with an additional $2,000 scholarship each. Students at the ceremony received Littmann stethoscopes, which were presented to them courtesy of Nutramax Laboratories to mark the monumental occasion.

For Dr. Matthew Edson, the school’s founding dean who also addressed the students at the ceremony, the moment reflected something deeper: the individual journeys that brought everyone to Rowan University.

“Each of our students has their own unique story that brought them to our program. Many of them have had the dream of becoming a veterinarian for years, often since childhood,” said Dr. Edson. 

Dr. Edson, who has steered the school’s development since its founding, told students that their education would be designed to prepare them to be “day-one ready” upon graduation. The ceremony also featured remarks from national veterinary leaders like Dr. Michael Bailey, president of the American Veterinary Medical Association, who encouraged the incoming new students to embrace emerging technologies within the field, like artificial intelligence, as they embark on their careers.  

“Each of you aspires to serve, and today marks the beginning of that service. Always do good by your patients, your clients, and all creatures great and small,” said Dr. Bailey.

Rowan University President Ali A. Houshmand also took a moment to reflect on the institution’s rapid growth in medical education. Since 2012, Rowan has developed three medical schools, making it one of only two universities within the nation that offer allopathic, osteopathic, and veterinary medicine.

The Shreiber School’s development was supported by a strong coalition of southern New Jersey lawmakers and approved by Gov. Phil Murphy. In 2021, the state allocated $75 million for the construction of academic and clinical facilities, which include classrooms, research labs, educational and diagnostic laboratories, a teaching hospital open to the public, and faculty offices. The school was officially founded in 2022. 

But what sets the Shreiber School apart, Dr. Matthew Edson explained, is its focus on hands-on training and community engagement.

“Students will travel with the Shelter Medicine and Community Engagement Mobile Unit to underserved communities where they will help deliver care to pets that currently lack access to a veterinarian,” said Dr. Edson.

Students will rotate through area shelters to perform surgeries on animals preparing for adoption and join the school’s Large Animal Field Service to work with horses, pigs, goats, cows, and other livestock across South Jersey.

Beyond that, students will have opportunities to explore career paths at affiliate partner sites, such as the Cape May County Zoo, Cedar Run Wildlife Refuge, and the Marine Mammal Stranding Center.

“Whatever opportunity a student at the Schreiber School wants to pursue, there is an exciting opportunity nearby for them to explore,” said Dr. Edson. “In the process, we’re able to provide support to our partner organizations to ensure we are a good neighbor within our state.”

The community focus, he added, reflects the urgent need for veterinarians across N.J. Until now, every aspiring veterinarian had to leave the state for education, often paying costly out-of-state tuition. By having a veterinarian school within the state, students have wider access to education with in-state tuition rates and stay local to practice in New Jersey.

“Having the various different areas of the states means that we need many different vets to cater to the city life of one pet, but also living on a farm with another pet. By only having out-of-state options, many people would uproot their lives, move across the country, attend vet school for 4 years, and build themselves a life,” said Kayla Bhagaloo, a 3+4 BS/DVM student who will be a part of the Shreiber School next fall. “In those 4 years, many people find jobs, friends, and homes, meaning that they rarely ever come back to practice in the state. This has caused a shortage of veterinarians not only in New Jersey but nationwide.”

Classes officially began on Tuesday, Sept. 2, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony set for Friday, Oct. 3. The school’s veterinary curriculum is designed and tailored to be both innovative and immersive, combining lectures, early clinical experiences, rotations, virtual reality, and simulations. Along with the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.) degree, the school plans to offer graduate options such as an M.S. and Ph.D. in veterinary biomedical science, as well as an accelerated D.V.M. and M.B.A. in collaboration with the Rohrer College of Business.

Looking ahead, Dr. Edson hopes the school will prepare graduates to meet diverse needs across urban and rural communities, from Camden to farm towns in South Jersey. He also envisions Rowan veterinarians playing a role in addressing emerging challenges from zoonotic diseases to climate-impacted animal health. Most of all, he hopes they will carry a sense of service with them.

“I hope that our graduates are not only excellent veterinarians, but excellent members of their communities.  We are instilling the need to give back and support our neighbors during their educational program and are excited to see them carry this forward into their professional careers,” said Dr. Edson. 

For comments/questions about this story, DM us on Instagram @thewhitatrowan or email [email protected]