CSU's vet school expansion, UNC's new medical school may be funded by state: What we know

A portion of the cost of expanding Colorado State University’s veterinary school and constructing a new medical school at the University of Northern Colorado would be funded by the state under a plan pitched Monday by Gov. Jared Polis.

Polis’ plan, designed to address workforce shortages in human and animal health care in Colorado, would provide $50 million in funding toward CSU's new Veterinary Health and Education Complex and $128 million for a new medical school at UNC in Greeley, spokespersons for each school said Monday.

The bill would also help fund new facilities at Metropolitan State University of Denver and Trinidad State College for training and certification programs for nurses and nursing and dental assistants.

The funding plan, through $247 million in state-authorized certificates of participation, is being introduced with bipartisan support, the governor’s office said, but still needs legislative approval.

“It’s going to be a big deal for the whole state,” Polis told the Coloradoan in a video interview a few hours before formally announcing the plan. “With our growing population and with many health care professionals retiring early or burning out during the (COVID-19) pandemic, we have a shortage that’s projected to grow even stronger with an aging population. So, it’s absolutely critical that we train more nurses, doctors, nurse assistants, veterinarians right here in Colorado.”

Here's a closer look:

Colorado State University veterinary hospital expansion

The CSU System Board of Governors has already approved a $230 million upgrade and expansion of the James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital, allowing the university to increase the size of its veterinary classes as early as fall 2026. Construction of the Veterinary Health and Education Complex began in September with an approved funding plan that included private donations, requests for state funding, university bonds and other sources, CSU officials said in Source, an online publication of the university’s marketing and communications team.

The goal, Polis told the Coloradoan, is to allow CSU to increase the number of graduates in its veterinary program by 20% or more annually while also expanding its research programs. CSU has the only public veterinary school in Colorado.

“There’s a veterinary shortage, both on the agricultural side and the pet side,” Polis told the Coloradoan. “Many animals are not getting the care that they need. We’re working with the legislature on a number of different ways to help, including expanding what veterinary assistants can do, looking at mid-level veterinary professionals.

“But, at the end of the day, we need more veterinarians, and we also want to make sure Colorado’s veterinary school is positioned to be the best in the nation.”

The new state-of-the-art veterinary teaching hospital with an expanded primary care clinic will be nearly double the size of the current facility that was built in 1978, school officials said. It will allow CSU to add 30 new students to its incoming class in the fall of 2026, increasing the class size from 138 to 168. That will increase the program’s four-year capacity from 620 students to 720 while also opening up space for more than 275 undergraduate students in biomedical sciences and other programs on the university’s main campus.

Students currently in the veterinary program take classes and participate in laboratory work and research at CSU’s south campus that includes the veterinary hospital and its main campus about 1 1/2 miles away.

CSU’s veterinary school sees more than 47,000 patient visits and performs nearly 300,000 diagnostic tests annually and has outgrown its current facility, school officials said.

“With the new center, we will be able to bring excellent education, ground-breaking research and accessible patient care together into state-of-the-art facilities,” CSU President Amy Parsons told the Coloradoan through a school spokesperson. “CSU will increase veterinary student enrollment, enhance the experiential education we deliver and provide top quality care to a growing number of patients from across the state.”

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The expansion project also includes the construction of a new $13 million Livestock Veterinary Hospital adjacent to the existing Johnson Family Equine Hospital, according to Source. That facility, scheduled to open in early 2025, will provide medical, surgical and ambulatory facilities for livestock.

“I think the state’s vision to package this along with all these other health care activities really speaks to the growing importance of that One Health concept,” said CSU System Chancellor Tony Frank, a former professor of veterinary science at CSU and practicing veterinarian. “The health of humans, the health of animals — whether it’s zoonotic diseases, environmental factors, the health of our planet — these things are all linked together, and we’re really proud to be part of this. We’ll put it to good use.”

New medical school at University of Northern Colorado

UNC plans to launch a medical school that will produce 150 graduates a year, beginning as early as 2030, school officials said in a link dedicated to the project on the university’s website, unco.edu. The College of Osteopathic Medicine will provide students with Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degrees (D.O.) the scientific foundations they need to become licensed physicians and require the same residency training after medical school as those who earn Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) degrees through allopathic medical schools.

“Allopathic medicine focuses on diagnosing and treating medical conditions, while osteopathic medicine takes a more holistic, patient-centered approach and focuses heavily on prevention,” reads a “frequently asked questions” page about the new medical school on the UNC website.

Primary care is the focus of 57% of DOs and only 28% of MDs, UNC officials said in a news release from the governor’s office following the formal announcement. Fifty-nine of Colorado’s 64 counties currently are experiencing a shortage of primary care health professionals, the governor’s office said.

The medical school at UNC would be just the second public medical school in the state, joining the University of Colorado’s program that includes a branch at CSU that admits 12 new students each year, and only the third overall.

The total cost of the new medical school is expected to be about $200 million, a school spokesperson said, including physical construction costs of $127.5 million. Startup costs are estimated to be $30 million through three planning years and the first two years of operation until tuition revenues are projected to match expenditures, according to the website’s FAQ.

The university has already raised $31 million in philanthropic funding for the project, spokesperson Deanna Herbert said.

“I am thankful for and thrilled by the support of the governor and our legislators for their efforts to help make this important vision a reality,” UNC President Andy Feinstein told the Coloradoan in an emailed statement. “Our proposed College of Osteopathic Medicine will have an impact across each corner of the state by strengthening the health care workforce, particularly the growing demand for doctors. I’m especially proud that UNC is in partnership with other institutions of higher education to address what is a critical issue for our state. This investment in our health care workforce will help meet the needs of Coloradans everywhere.”

How would the funding work?

Funding for the capital construction of the expanded veterinary hospital at CSU, medical school at UNC, and facilities to support expanded certification and training of other health care professionals at MSU Denver and Trinidad State College would come from a certificate of participation, Polis said.

Certificates of participation are a funding mechanism the state has used since 1979 to build or maintain capital assets, according to a 2018 legislative issue brief. Once authorized by the Colorado General Assembly, they allow the state to enter into a lease-purchase agreement for a proposed facility.

The state typically transfers its interests in the property to a lessor, in this case CSU, then leases the property back through annual payments. The lessor assigns its interests to a trustee, usually a commercial bank, who holds the title to the property, collects lease payments from the state and makes payments to the investors.

“These are all ideas that have been on the books — there’s many good ideas across the state — but what we’re announcing today is the funding to actually make them a reality,” Polis said.

What are the other projects in this plan?

The Health Institute Tower project at MSU Denver will increase the capacity by 25% in its programs in nursing, behavioral health, psychology and other areas, according to the governor’s office.

Trinidad State plans to expand the student capacity of its allied health programs by 50% through an addition to its San Luis Valley campus in Alamosa. That program provides training and professional certification for nurses, emergency medical technicians, medical and dental assistants, Trinidad State President Rhonda Eppers said in the news release from the governor’s office.

The addition in Alamosa will also provide “much-needed space for student wrap around services as we work to reduce long-standing education inequities across the rural San Luis Valley,” Eppers said in the news release.

Reporter Kelly Lyell covers education, breaking news, some sports and other topics of interest for the Coloradoan. Contact him at kellylyell@coloradoan.com, twitter.com/KellyLyell or facebook.com/KellyLyell.news. 

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado State vet hospital, UNC med school may get state funds