Legislators join celebration as OSU commemorates milestone investment for future of veterinary medicine in Oklahoma

Tuesday, August 12, 2025

Media Contact: Mack Burke | Associate Director of Media Relations | 405-744-5540 | mack.burke_iv@okstate.edu

In a gathering filled with gratitude and excitement, the Cowboy family came together Tuesday to recognize and celebrate the historic $250 million state funding appropriation for Oklahoma State University’s new veterinary teaching hospital.  

Hosted at the ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center, the event drew state leaders, alumni, faculty, staff, students and supporters who helped make the project a reality.   

“This is a day many of us have long envisioned — and your advocacy, support and persistence made it happen,” OSU President Jim Hess said. “Now, we go to work.”  

With the aim of becoming the top college of veterinary medicine in the nation, OSU is committed to building a new 255,000-square-foot facility to replace the existing 145,376-square-foot veterinary hospital, which was built nearly a half-century ago to serve 60 students but now supports more than 150.  

With this expansion, OSU will address one of the most urgent infrastructure needs in its veterinary program while expanding its ability to train the next generation of veterinarians.  

Dr. Hess said this critical investment — the largest state appropriation in university history — combined with $79 million allocated in 2023, marks a significant step forward in advancing the future of veterinary education, food security and public health in Oklahoma.  

“The new hospital is more than bricks and mortar. It’s a cornerstone of our land-grant mission — a promise to serve all Oklahomans through accessible education, research that matters and community-driven care,” Hess said. “It’s a bold commitment to the next generation of veterinarians who will safeguard our food supply, promote animal health, drive rural prosperity and strengthen Oklahoma’s economic future.   

“It also sends a powerful message: Oklahoma State is ready to lead.”  

Jimmy Harrel, past chair of the OSU/A&M Board of Regents, worked with leaders statewide to secure support for this vision. Like Hess, he expressed gratitude to the Oklahoma Legislature for its support and confidence in the president’s leadership, and Hess was quick to acknowledge his dedication and the contributions of faculty, staff, alumni and supporters across the state and beyond.

“As chair of the OSU/A&M Board of Regents, I had the privilege of working with passionate leaders who knew that our teaching hospital had to be rebuilt if we were serious about producing the best veterinarians in the country,” Harrel said. “This $250 million investment powerfully answers that call. Thanks to the State of Oklahoma, and thanks to everyone who rolled up their sleeves to make this happen. We now have the momentum to take OSU’s veterinary medicine program to new heights.”  

As one of just 33 veterinary colleges in the country — and the only one in Oklahoma — the OSU CVM plays a critical role in meeting Oklahoma’s veterinary workforce needs. Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture and OSU/A&M Regent Blayne Arthur works alongside producers in the state daily and knows just how important this investment is to people in all 77 counties.   

“For generations, OSU’s veterinary graduates have served our farmers and ranchers, cared for our beloved animals, and advanced the field of animal health through cutting-edge research,” said Arthur, chair of the OSU Veterinary Medicine Authority and Trust. “This historic investment in a new veterinary teaching hospital isn’t just a win for OSU, it’s a win for our state’s agriculture industry, for rural communities and for every Oklahoman who depends on healthy animals and strong veterinary care.”  

OSU alumnus and Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives Kyle Hilbert; Sen. Chuck Hall, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee; and Rep. Trey Caldwell, chair of the House Appropriations Committee were also pivotal in championing OSU’s aspirations at the Capitol. Hilbert and Hall spoke Tuesday about the impact this investment will have in Oklahoma.  

Joined in the audience by other notable guests like Sen. Jerry Alvord, Sen. Todd Gollihare, Sen. Darcy Jech, Sen. Grant Green, Rep. Toni Hasenbeck, Rep. John Pfeiffer, Rep. Carl Newton, Rep. John Kane, Rep. Mike Ley, Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education Chancellor Sean Burrage and OSU Veterinary Medicine Authority and Trust representatives, Hilbert spoke about OSU’s land-grant legacy, which dates back to the passage of the Morrill Act, which was signed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862.  

“We’re carrying on President Lincoln's legacy today, as we fearlessly promote agriculture to the most advanced standard of the world with a world class veterinary hospital right here in Stillwater, Oklahoma,” Hilbert said. “What a great day.” 

For Hess, the celebration — which happened to land 50 years to the day from the first time he set foot on campus in Stillwater as a student — was a “full-circle” moment. His first job on campus was shoveling horse stalls, and now he’s leading the effort to cement a life-changing vision for veterinary medicine in Oklahoma. He called it a “legacy in the making — one that belongs to all of you.”  

“It will protect our food supply and it will secure our state's future,” Hess said. “I know so many of you here know how important the agricultural economy of our state is. We often forget, and I want to remind the rest of the world — everybody in this room knows this — that pork, beef and chicken are not made in the back of a Walmart store. It happens in our agricultural producing economy, and there are so many opportunities for us to strengthen our agricultural economy.  

“As a land-grant university, it is our responsibility and our duty to always keep forefront in our mind that agriculture and veterinary medicine are pillars of our land-grant mission. And I want to thank each and every one of you for believing in that land-grant mission.”