MxCC’s Veterinary Technology Program Earns Accreditation

Middlesex Community College’s Veterinary Technology program has received professional accreditation from the American Veterinary Medical Association. This important status, which was approved at the April 2015 meeting of the AVMA’s Committee on Veterinary Technician Education and Activities, takes effect immediately.  Students graduating from the MxCC Vet Tech program will now qualify to take the Veterinary Technician National Examination (VTNE), a vital career step for anyone in this field.

MxCC will graduate its first class of 16 veterinary technology students at its 2015 Commencement ceremony on May 28.  One of these students has been accepted to a highly competitive externship at the University of Tennessee’s College of Veterinary Medicine, and most of the others have a veterinary technician job in place.  Twenty-four students have enrolled in the program beginning this fall.

According to the AVMA, the purpose of accreditation is to recognize programs that are fully capable of graduating capable technicians for veterinarians.  This designation is earned by submitting a detailed application, hosting a three-day site visit for the AVMA, employing credentialed teaching staff, and fulfilling numerous professional requirements.  Only 231 programs in the country meet these strict standards.

“The college began planning for a Vet Tech program nearly six years ago and accreditation was always in mind so students would be most prepared to excel in this competitive career,” said Dr. Steve Minkler, MxCC’s dean of academic affairs.  “Now, after much dedication by our team and our clinical partners at Pieper Memorial Veterinary Hospital, we have succeeded.  It is such a pleasure to add Vet Tech to the growing list of professionally accredited programs at MxCC, which includes Early Childhood Education, Ophthalmic Design & Dispensing, and Radiologic Technology.”

The accreditation process was completed under the guidance of Dr. Steven Levy, MxCC’s Veterinary Technology Program coordinator, and Amy Lawton, certified veterinary technician and MxCC instructor.  Input was provided by Dr. Rob Olson, Dr. Virginia Nuñez-Olson, and Kurt Oster of Pieper Memorial Veterinary Hospital, which partners with MxCC to provide student training in labs, on specialized equipment, and in hospital settings.  Details on the Vet Tech program can be found at http://mxcc.edu/degrees/veterinary-technology.

The American Veterinary Medical Association (www.AVMA.org), established in 1863, is a not-for-profit association representing more than 86,500 veterinarians working in private and corporate practice, government, industry, academia, and uniformed services.