GREENFIELD — Pending state approval, Greenfield Community College plans to launch a veterinary technician program in which students can earn an associate of applied science degree beginning fall 2027.
The Greenfield Community College Board of Trustees voted unanimously last week to approve the creation of the new program, which will need to be approved by the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education prior to being opened to student enrollment. The program, which requires 240 hours of hands-on skills training, will be run in collaboration with the Franklin County Technical School and utilize its veterinary and animal science building.
“The program was developed in partnership with the animal science faculty at Franklin County Technical School,” GCC Dean of Workforce Development Alex Carley said. “The skills training, all the competencies involving hands-on skills, will take place at the skills lab. We have a memorandum of understanding in place for that, as well as on-site with several clinical partners, which are local veterinary hospitals, with whom I have signed letters of commitment.”
At last week’s meeting, Trustee Stewart “Buz” Eisenberg asked about the cost of the program and if now is a good time to be launching new programs, given the college’s budget challenges. For FY27, GCC is looking at a $2.86 million deficit, which the administration is hoping to reduce to $1.6 or further through department consolidation, retirement incentives, potential layoffs, and other cost-saving measures.
“Is it a good time for it? I love everything else about this program, and I would love to say yes if there isn’t a financial burden during a budgetary shortfall time,” Eisenberg said.
Schutt said the college was working with a donor who loves animals and is willing to support the creation of the program, and through grant opportunities and partnerships with local area hospitals and the tech school, she is confident the creation of the program will not require the college to invest too much into equipment purchases.
” … This program’s a little creative in that we are working with Tech on this program,” Schutt said. “They just built their building, so some of that cost will be defrayed.”
Carley said that by using the veterinary building at Franklin Tech and partnering with other area animal hospitals, GCC will not need to purchase a lot of equipment, and the cost associated with the program will mainly be the cost of hiring teaching staff. She noted that the program would start small with just eight students, and the college could hire more staff and increase enrollment in the future.
“This program would be staffed similarly to how you staffed the surg tech AAS [surgical technican, associates of applied acience] degree, which would require a program director and a full-time faculty member to oversee the program in year one, and they would serve as the instructor in the specific course in that first year, with a small pilot cohort of eight students,” Carley said. “After that first year, because of accreditation requirements, there are student-to-faculty ratios anytime you’re dealing with live animals, but we can scale up enrollment with an additional clinical coordinator after that first year.
“This is not an extraordinary financial burden on the college,” Carley continued. “The primary cost really is that additional staff person.”
She said that hiring the program coordinator for the surg tech program was $115,000, and hiring a veterinary coordinator would likely be a comparable cost. She said getting state approval typically takes 18 months, so the college can revisit the cost and if at that time it is not financially feasible, take the program off the table.
Trustee Margaret Nugent, who also works as the vocational director at Franklin County Technical School, said the program would provide an opportunity for Tech students and other students in the region interested in animal science to continue their education locally. She added that the animal science program is growing in popularity, and by looking at labor market data, she believes there is an increasing need for veterinary technicians.
“I really appreciate the pathway that it allows for our students who are in our animal science program to continue on and to have that right here,” Nugent said. “And to share our new space, is tremendous…. I think we’ll see very strong outcomes and employer engagement on this one as well.”
