Our next witness is Dr. G. C. Holm, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Oklahoma State University.

It gives me particular pleasure to welcome a fellow Oklahoman to our hearing this morning.

STATEMENT OF DR. GLENN C. HOLM, DEAN, COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE, OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY

Dr. HOLM. I have a prepared statement. I would like to have it included in the record and perhaps I could clarify a few matters that have been mentioned in this hearing.

(The prepared statement of Dr. Holm follows :)

STATEMENT OF DR. GLENN C. HOLM, DEAN, COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE, OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY

Mr. Chairman, Members of the Public Health Sub-committee of the Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee. My name is Glenn C. Holm and I am Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Oklahoma State University. It is a pleasure to present information in support of the proposed legislation represented by House Resolutions 490, 3348, 4809, 5574, 6332, 5267, 5890, 5954, 6087, 6999, 8029, 11205, 12345, 14206, 14220 and S. 509. We are grateful to Congressmen Andrews Alabama; Steed, Johnson, Leggett, Stephens, Pepper; Andrews, North Dakota; Robinson, Mathews, Frazer, Dorn, Fogarty, Anderson, Nelson, Mackay; and Senator Hill for their support. The Veterinary Medical Educational Facilities Construction Act of 1966 also has strong backing in Oklahoma. You, Mr. Chairman, have received supporting statements from livestock and farm organizations, The Oklahoma Veterinary Medical Association, The University of Oklahoma Medical School, The State Health Department, and Oklahoma State University. Permit me to briefly discuss the regional aspects of veterinary medical education. The agreement of 1943 between the state of West Virginia and the Medical College of Virginia can be considered as the blueprint for the present Southern Regional Education Board program. Regional education was discussed at the Southern Governors' Conference in 1945. Committees were formed and drafts were drawn for review at future meetings. The compact, which was to become effective when the legislatures of six states ratified it, was approved at the 1948 conference. An interim Regional Council on Education was formed at that time. It is now known as the Southern Regional Education Board.

The regional program was originally designed for all the health sciences to (1) avoid duplication of costly facilities; (2) assist in improving the staffs at contract institutions; (3) increase the pool of qualified applicants for each school, and (4) increase the number of professional men and women in the contracting states. Later, social work, forestry and architecture were added to the programs for medicine, veterinary medicine, dentistry, and public health.

At the present time, veterinary medical education is the most extensive of the various SREB programs. The colleges of veterinary medicine at Auburn University, University of Georgia, Oklahoma State University, Texas A and M University and Tuskegee Institute serve the fifteen southern states. Records indicate that a total of 1,155 men and women have graduated with the degree, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, under the contract program. In addition, 429 contract students are enrolled in the veterinary medicine programs of these five colleges during the present school year.

When the first SREB students were admitted in the fall of 1949, the contract fee was $1,000 per year per student. This level of support continued until the fall of 1958 when the fee was raised to $1,500. Through the school year 1964–65, a total of $6,932,125 has been paid to the five institutions by the Southern Regional Education Board from funds appropriated by the contracting states. It is estimated that $643,750 will be paid during the present school year.

The second regional education program serving veterinary medicine, patterned after the Southern blueprint, is active in the Western states where the University of California, Davis; Colorado State University and Washington State University serve the eleven Western states. A few independent State-University con

tracts are also in force. It is apparent that veterinary medical education is regional in approach and will continue to expand if adequate facilities are available.

Recently, a study of student quotas and costs of training revealed at all of the southern states have increasing numbers of qualified applicants and will need more spaces reserved for future classes. At the same time, the study on costs of student training showed that contract and student fees pay less than half of the training costs incurred by the colleges. Under these conditions and present space limitations, the Admissions Committees of the various colleges are forced to give priority to increasing numbers of resident applicants before any new contract quotas can be approved. Expansion of teaching space can correct this maladjustment.

Some representatives of contracting states indicate a need for expansion of student loan funds. Lack of finances is preventing many well-qualified students from entering veterinary medicine. As more colleges of veterinary medicine move to the trimester and four term programs, the need for student loans will become even more critical.

The national interest in the veterinary medical profession is characterized by increasing numbers of qualified applicants seeking admission. This, in part, is due to a growing awareness that veterinary medicine is one of the most dynamic health sciences. Young people are also learning that there is a critical need for many more veterinarians in practice, regulatory medicine, education and research, industry, and as members of the public health team.

Many veterinarians who serve animal agriculture are joining with colleagues in establishing group practices. These groups are being designed to bring into force many of the special skills needed to fully serve modern livestock production. Group practice in both large and small animal medicine furnish the public with more complete services and, as a consequence, require more graduates.

The need for more graduate veterinarians with special post-doctoral training becomes critical. The colleges of veterinary medicine must train present students in greater depth and, at the same time, furnish refresher and special post-doctoral training for the graduate of earlier years.

Passage of this legislation will strengthen our nation's health and safeguard our food supply. Young men and women now being denied the opportunity to enter their chosen profession could take their places in support of this nation's health and security. At the present time, laboratory and classroom space rather than state lines are the barriers to expanded veterinary medical education. Regardless of the location, all colleges of veterinary medicine are regional in training. Your support and early passage of this legislation will be appreciated.

Dr. HOLM. Dean Thorp indicated that the Oklahoma College of Veterinary Medicine may have money coming under title II. This would be fine but the money that we are getting is out of the $55 million bond issue that the Oklahoma constituents recently voted for higher education. We are not under the title II as far as I know.

Mr. JARMAN. It is coming from Oklahoma funds entirely?

Dr. HOLM. This is correct. We are getting ready for you and Congressman Steed to get this bill passed.

I do have some material here on regional veterinary medical education that I would like to present. Oklahoma is, of course, a part of this program, therefore, I want to make just three or four brief com

ments.

The regional program was originally designed for all the health sciences to (1) avoid duplication of costly facilities; (2) to assist in improving the staffs at contract institutions; (3) increase the pool of qualified applicants for each school; and (4) increase the number of professional men and women in the contracting States. Later, social work, forestry, and architecture were added to the programs for medicine, veterinary medicine, dentistry, and public health.

As you know, Mr. Chairman, Oklahoma has a contract with several of the surrounding States and the Southern Regional and Education

Board. These 15 States are served by the University of Auburn, University of Georgia, Oklahoma State University, Texas A. & M., and Tuskegee Institute. Since 1949 these colleges have graduated 1,155 men and women with the doctor of veterinary medicine degree. These are all under the contract program. There are 429 students enrolled in these same colleges today and about one-fourth of them will graduate this spring.

There is a second regional program-the western region involving the University of California at Davis, Colorado State University, and Washington State University, and they serve the 13 Western States, including Hawaii and Alaska.

There are in addition independent State institution type of arrangements such as the one with West Virginia and Ohio State University, the one with North Dakota where my friend Congressman Andrews resides, and for Nebraska. These are private contracts. The point that I would like to make is that student quotas and student costs are not compatible right at the moment. We have been asked by our contracting States to increase our number of contract students. With the pressures of qualified applicants from our own State we must hold the line. But we do hope to increase the class size so that we can handle more contract and Oklahoma students.

At our institution this year, we have 156 qualified applicants, as compared to 139 for last year. These 156 were selected out of 600 trying to get applications. We allowed only students from Oklahoma and the contract States to apply. Out of those 156 qualified applicants we will take 48. We would like to increase our first-year class by 50 percent. And we could do it with the assistance of this type of legislation.

I am sorry Congressman Nelsen isn't here because one of the demands is for more practitioners in the large animal field. There is a growing tendency for group practice, just as in the small-animal practice, and this is the area where we feel the veterinary profession can do a great service by adding extra skills to serve modern livestock production. So these new graduates could supply a great service to animal agriculture. Mr. Jarman, our 1966 class will heed the call of governmental service this spring. Over 10 percent of the 1966 class will go into the Public Health Service on special and important assignments. About 24 percent of the class will go into the U.S. Air Force. Another 23 percent will go into the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps.

Mr. JARMAN. Fifty-seven percent of your graduating class

Dr. HOLM. Have already made commitments, to go into the U.S. Government service and this does not count those that might enter the U.S. Department of Agriculture service.

The plea that I make is, the need is more for graduate veterinarians with special doctoral training, and this is an area where all 17 of the States and all 18 of the veterinary colleges are involved. The colleges of veterinary medicine must train present students in far greater depth and at the same time furnish refresher courses and special postdoctoral training for the earlier graduates. Our own school and many of the other colleges are giving many international refresher courses in modern veterinary medical education. The Oklahoma contract with Guatemala, is a case in point.

The passage of this legislation will strengthen our Nation's health and safeguard our food supply. At the present time laboratory and classroom space rather than State lines are the barriers to expanded veterinary medical education. All colleges of veterinary medicine are regional in training and your support and early passage of this legislation will really be appreciated, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. JARMAN. Thank you very much, Dean Helm, for your contribution to our hearings.

Mr. Mackay?

Mr. MACKAY. No questions, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. JARMAN. Thank you very much for your testimony.

The House is in session. We are continuing the hearing until we get definite word as to whether we can recess and continue the hearing at 2 o'clock. So we will cover as much ground as we can until we know what the committee plans can be for this afternoon.

Mr. MACKAY. I would like to cite for the record a letter from J. W. Ashton, director of the division of graduate programs to President Harry M. Philpott, of Auburn University, received on March 24, 1966 (see p. 86) in which it was stated that the Advisory Committee was convinced that the field of veterinary medicine was covered by the generic term "schools of medicine" as employed in the act. And that for this reason it could not recommend approval of the grant. Schools of medicine are explicitly excluded from the Higher Education Act, and it was for this reason that the grant was turned down. The other document I would like to refer to without asking that it be introduced was the letter that you quoted from, from Wilbur J. Cohen to the chairman of our Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, commenting on these bills.

Mr. JARMAN. Of course that letter will be made part of the record. Dr. THORP. Mr. Chairman, that was the letter that I asked to be put in the record earlier. We will leave it up to you.

Mr. JARMAN. I am sure the committee will include it as part of the record in the overall consideration of this entire problem.

Our next witness is Dr. W. R. Krill, dean, College of Veterinary Medicine, Ohio State University.

STATEMENT OF DR. WALTER R. KRILL, DEAN, COLLEGE OF VETERINARY MEDICINE, OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, COLUMBUS, OHIO

Mr. KRILL. Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, I feel somewhat like I did a number of years ago when I was asked to speak at a dedication exercise and I had my speech all prepared and when I got there I found seven ministers of different faiths on the platform, all of them preceded me and by the time I was called upon there wasn't much left to say.

There is this, though, that I would like to say in regard to this situation. In regard to the remark that Mr. Cohen made in that letter, if we remove the veterinarians and their service in the public health field, the problems and the need for people trained to take care of the human population would be far greater than what it will be if we retain veterinarians who control the food supply and the quality of the food supply that we are consuming.

I would also like to make this remark. Having been one of the deans who has gone through a program of trying to build a whole new facility, having inherited a facility that was 50-some years old and trying to build a whole new facility, since 1946, I know some of the problems associated with it, especially with the demand for education, and the numbers are far greater than what we can take care of in the medical areas. I realize the problems that the administrators have in providing-in giving funds for a worthy cause such as the veterinary medicine when they have this large expansion of student population in the other areas that equally need an education.

It is expensive-the cost of education in veterinary medicine is very expensive. The State of Ohio is investing $3,200 per student per year over and above what the student pays in fees. This makes it very difficult to take out-of-State students. We do have an informal agreement with the State of West Virginia in which they want us to take the students. We have been taking four. We are trying to live up to that agreement since 1951. Sometimes it is a little difficult to do that and to justify it because the amount of money the State of West Virginia pays to Ohio only covers about half the cost of the education in the investment we are making.

It is very difficult to admit any out-of-State students. We only admit about one applicant out of four who apply for admission. And one of the most discouraging things to an educator who has been selecting students and realizes a need, and our responsibility. It is very difficult for us to turn down well-qualified applicants. At least 50 percent of those turned down would be a real credit to the profession and would make a most valuable contribution to our profession if only given an opportunity.

When I stop to think of the advantages this country enjoys, the food of animal origin that we enjoy that isn't exceeded in quality or quantity any place in the world. When I stop to think that we have only 6 percent of the population of the world and yet we consume 29 percent of the meat in the world. When I stop to think also of the great potential of disease, and as has been mentioned before this is the healthiest place in the world in which to raise livestock. That didn't come about by accident. When you stop to realize all the men who have played a part, Federal men, the people in the Inspection and Quarantine Division, and I happened to be at one time out in Los Angeles on an inspection tour when the international polo team came back-they brought a horse back with them that did not leave with. them. Came from the Mediterranean area at a time when a rather dangerous disease was spreading through that area and could easily have been introduced into this country.

And then when I think about a situation that happened in our own State of Ohio only a few years ago, a rather exotic type of unusual— unusual type of disease for our area broke out in different herds and flocks through the State. We immediately-our veterinarians who were the frontline of defense got on the job, called in the State and Federal people, and came to find out it was anthrax that was introduced from bone meal that originated in Egypt, northern Africa, and was sent to the United States by way of Belgium. Fortunately, it was detected early and stamped out immediately. These are the