Veterinary School deanship endowed

Despite having financial problems which many deem insurmountable, the School of Veterinary Medicine became the first veterinary school in North America to receive an endowed deanship last month. Donated by Miami resident Gilbert Kahn, a member of the Annenberg publishing family, the endowed deanship comes as the Vet School searches for a new dean to replace Edwin Andrews. Andrews officially stepped down from the post at the end of December. According to acting Dean Alan Kelly, the endowed deanship should attract highly qualified applicants. Kelly called the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine "probably the most prestigious position in veterinary medicine in this country, if not the world." Kahn's gift will hopefully encourage more private donations for the school, whose state funding has been on shaky ground for the past two years, Kelly said. The Vet School currently relies on state funding for about 40 percent of its annual budget. "[The donation] is a wonderful signal of the continued vitality and health of the Veterinary School," Kelly said. "It gives us tremendous optimism for the future." Associate Dean Charles Newton agreed, saying that the gift is "a very, very good signal to the community that we are a very stable and viable entity." Kelly said, however, that Kahn's gift does not ensure the future of the school. The Vet School's livelihood still depends on whether or not it receives adequate state support, he added. Most of the school's funding was restored this summer after two years of uncertainty, but the question is likely to come up again next year. "We have a number of challenges ahead to try and obtain stable funding from Harrisburg," Kelly said. The deanship is the 15th endowed chair at the Vet School, and the 132nd chair endowed at the University during the Campaign for Penn, the University's $1.3 billion capital drive. Kahn, a breeder and exhibiter of pure-bred dogs, is the president of the Animal Welfare Society of South Florida, Inc. In the past, he has supported research at the Vet School through his Charing Cross Research Fund, and has been a major contributor to a scholars' fund at the school.