Sep 29, 2007 7:21 am US/Eastern
FIU School Of Medicine Spared From Budget Cuts
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MIAMI-DADE (CBS4) ―
Florida International University's College of Medicine will not face extinction from the legislature's need to make statewide budget cuts.
In an exclusive interview with
CBS4's Brian Andrews, the dean of the school, Dr. John Rock, explained his relief only twenty-four hours after learning that it would not lose crucial public dollars.
Dr. Rock moved to South Florida from Louisiana nine months ago to start this new school from scratch. When he learned state dollars could be cut, he said he never lost faith.
"We were just gratified that the legislature working with the governor saw the importance of our medical schools," said Dr. Rock.
He said that the medical college's development and recruitment will continue. "The kind of response that we got from this community in support of the medical school was overwhelming," he explained. "We were very pleased, and I was very honored by their coming forth to support us in our mission to establish this school."
His office is lined with academic accomplishments, sculptures, and memorabilia of his long career in medicine. His most recent position was chancellor and chief executive officer at LSU's Health Science Center.
His focus is now on getting the medical school accredited.
"Accreditation is important so that we can get permission from the Medical Committee on Liaison Education to admit our first class in 2009. The dollars that were committed by the state to fund the medical school are important to that plan."
FIU is already advertising for medical school faculty, and hopes to have the first classes in 2009.
In addition to state funding for a growing new school, Dr. Rock says FIU also received $5-million for scholarships and two faculty chairpersons from a private foundation, and the state will match those funds.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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