Dr. Philip C. Kosch, dean of the School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University since 1996, stepped down from that post June 30.

Following a sabbatical leave, Dr. Kosch will serve as special assistant to Provost Jamshed Bharucha, working on university-wide projects. Dr. Mohammed Sawkat Anwer, Distinguished Professor and chair of biomedical sciences at the school, is serving as interim dean until a successor is appointed.

"Under [Dr. Kosch's] deanship, the Cummings School has seen outstanding student achievement in competitive national programs, including leading the country in matches for clinical specialty training," Bharucha said.

"The creation of the Tufts Center for Conservation Medicine, continuous review and enhancement of our DVM curriculum, new graduate-degree programs in comparative biomedical sciences and laboratory animal medicine, and the restructuring of academic departments to enhance programmatic synergies have helped to make our veterinary school a distinctive school with unique programs and strengths."

The provost added, "Major new capital improvements, including the Agnes Varis Lecture Hall, the David McGrath Veterinary Teaching Laboratory, the Bernice Barbour Wildlife Medicine Building, the Luke & Lily Lerner Spay/Neuter Clinic, and the expansion of the Foster Hospital for Small Animals enabled Dean Kosch to unify the veterinary school and to greatly enhance the learning and working environment on the Grafton campus."

On May 5, the school was officially renamed the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in recognition of a landmark gift from the Cummings Foundation Inc., which has committed to investing $50 million in the veterinary school over the next 15 years (see JAVMA, Nov. 1, 2004, page 1325).

When the gift was announced last fall, William S. Cummings, president of the foundation, said, "The mission of Cummings Foundation is to invest in organizations that make contributions to our society. We were moved to recommend this commitment due to the practical, entrepreneurial spirit of Tufts University in general and Tufts veterinary school in particular."

The gift, the largest in Tufts' history, will help fund needed capital improvements, provide matching funds in support of major research proposals, and strengthen the educational and clinical missions of the school.

Dr. Kosch served on the AVMA Council on Research from 1994-2000.