Chiropractic schools hitting the mainstream?

Maybe this is no big deal, but did anyone do a double take when St. Petersburg College recently announced its partnership with a chiropractic school? The college will be working with the National University of Health Sciences in Lombard, Ill. so students can earn degrees from the latter without leaving Pinellas County.

In late 2004, a bid for a $60 million chiropractic school at Florida State University got real ugly, real fast. Charges of "pseudo-science" flew, then counter-charges of “professional bigotry.” Eventually, the Board of Governors put the kibosh on it.

We’re not saying the SPC partnership is anywhere near the same deal. But critics of the FSU plan said chiropractors were seeking links to a mainstream academic institution to enhance their profession's credibility and reach. Is the same thing happening with the SPC deal? If so, does it matter?

- Ron Matus, state education reporter