Support for NC State

The UNC system officials were reluctant at first to support the establishment of the school of veterinary medicine because they believed it was unnecessary and expensive. William Friday, president of the UNC system, claimed in a later interview that the pressure from state political interests was the main reason for the Board of Governors’ decision to place the Vet School at North Carolina State University (NCSU).

In 1974, the Board of Governors hired two consultants from Ohio State University's Vet School to recommend a site for the proposed school. The consultants recommended locating the Vet School at NCSU, based on North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University's (NC A&T) only recently expressed interest in the Vet School, that its site was too small, that its library facilities were inadequate, and that few NC veterinarians endorsed a Greensboro location.

Of the four, African-Americans members of the Board of Governors only E.B. Turner voted to build the Veterinary school at NCSU. In an article published in the News and Observer, Turner claimed that he voted for NCSU because NC A&T Chancellor had supported the compromise. Under the compromise, the board promised to plan a “related activity” at NC A&T.

Visit other Exhibits in Crossing the Color Line.