April 2019
2019 AAVMC Annual Conference and Iverson Bell Symposium Focused on Diversity, Team-Building

A record 389 educators from around the world registered for the AAVMC's 2019 Annual Conference and Iverson Bell Symposium in Washington, D.C. March 8-10. Themed "The Science of Building Effective Teams," the meeting focused on strategies for building diverse and inclusive teams in work environments. On the AAVMC's annual Advocacy Day, 84 educators representing 27 states and all AAVMC U.S. based institutions, spent the day discussing key issues in academic veterinary medicine with policy-makers on Capitol Hill. They visited 107 offices in the House of Representatives and 58 offices in the U.S. Senate, where they met with staffers and 33 different Members. Learn more.
New Officers Elected During 2019 AAVMC Assembly
Outgoing AAVMC President Dr. Calvin Johnson (right) passes the gavel to incoming President Dr. Michael Lairmore during the 2019 conference.
New AAVMC officers were installed, reports and presentations were shared by AAVMC executives and guests, and significant changes in policies affecting affiliate AAMVC member institutions were ratified during the 2019 AAVMC Assembly Meeting. Dr. Michael Lairmore, dean of the University of California - Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, became President of the AAVMC, and Dr. Mark Markel, dean of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine, was voted in as President-elect. Dr. Calvin Johnson, dean of the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine transitioned into the role of Past-President. Dr. Ruby Perry, dean of the Tuskegee University College of Veterinary Medicine was elected Secretary on the Board of Directors, and Dr. Mark Stetter, dean of the   Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, was elected Treasurer. Learn more.
AAVMC Undertaking New Strategic Planning Process
The AAVMC has embarked upon a new strategic planning process designed to set direction, establish priorities and focus resources in a way that ensures the organization is aligned with the needs and expectations of stakeholders throughout the academic veterinary medical community. The effort will build upon strategic planning work conducted in 2013 that helped articulate the AAVMC's Analyze, Catalyze and Advocate initiatives. The facilitator is CHP Mintz, LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based group that specializes in working with non-profit organizations. The company worked with the AAVMC on a strategic development initiative about a decade ago. Learn more.
AAVMC's Annual Career Fair Informs, Inspires Potential Future Veterinarians
About 300 prospective veterinary medical students and guests converged in Washington D.C. on March 10 for the AAVMC's 2019 Veterinary Medical Career Fair and Information Sessions. The event featured representatives from about 25 veterinary medical schools who provided information and answered questions. Attendees also heard from the AAVMC's Tony Wynne, director of admissions & recruitment affairs, who spoke on "Preparing for Veterinary School." After the presentations, students and their parents met with school representatives, asked questions and picked up informational materials about schools, admissions requirements, and veterinary careers. Learn more.
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CIVME Awards 2019 Research Grants
Collaborative proposals came from more than 40 institutions.
The Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges' (AAVMC) Council on International Veterinary Medical Education (CIVME) has funded three program grants designed to foster the enrichment and advancement of international academic veterinary medicine. This year, which is the third year of the program, 27 proposals representing collaborative efforts from more than 40 institutions around the world were received and considered during the process. CIVME was founded in 2016 to help advance AAVMC interests in elevating the quality of international academic veterinary medicine. Learn more.

Mariani Appointed Director of Strategic Initiatives
Vanessa Mariani has joined the AAVMC as Director of Strategic Initiatives. In that role, she will provide professional staff support in several key areas, including fundraising and development, admissions and recruitment, academic affairs and other areas. Mariani is an animal health executive with broad experience in international marketing and strategic development with several multinational corporations working in the animal health field. She is very familiar with the AAVMC's people and programs as she worked closely with the academic veterinary medical community during former positions she held with Boehringer Ingelheim, Merial and Zoetis. Learn more.
AAVMC Welcomes Four New Affiliate Member Institutions
Membership petitions from four new international colleges of veterinary medicine seeking AAVMC Affiliate status were ratified during the 2019 Assembly. They include Bahauddin Zakariya University, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Multan, Pakistan; Jordan University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Irbid, Jordan; University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic; and Unidad Académica de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, México. That brings the total number of AAVMC membership organizations to 78; 49 are fully accredited members and 29 are affiliate institutions. 
 
CEO Visits Affiliate Member Institutions in Pakistan, UAE
 
AAVMC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Andrew T. Maccabe spent a week in late March meeting with educators and touring veterinary medical institutions in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. During the trip, he visited both existing and potential AAVMC affiliate member institutions. He also met with faculty, students, and leaders from both the academic and organized veterinary medical communities. Maccabe worked his way through a series of detailed itineraries in various regions that included a variety of formal and informal exchanges. He toured numerous educational facilities, including classrooms, laboratories and animal holding and clinical facilities. Learn more.  
 
CBVE Working Group Making Progress, Moving Forward with Milestones
The AAVMC's Competency-Based Veterinary Education (CBVE) Working Group is now developing the "Milestones" component of the CBVE project, is broadly engaging with stakeholders, and has recently earned recognition from the larger competency-based medical education community for their progress and achievements. The group plans to publish the third CBVE booklet on Milestones as a companion to the CBVE Framework and Core EPAs booklets, which were released at the 2018 Annual Meeting. Learn more.
 
Virginia Tech Student Earns Pre-Vet Leadership Award
The AAVMC recently named Virginia Tech student Jillian M. Kazmierczak as the recipient of the AAVMC's 2019 Pre-Veterinary Leadership Award (PVLA). The award is presented to a student who demonstrates leadership and commitment to diversity in a pre-veterinary club. Among other achievements, Kazmierczek worked with a student at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine to facilitate a mentorship program between the pre-vet club and veterinary students. She is also working with the American Pre-Veterinary Medical Association (APVMA) Board and the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine to plan the National APVMA Symposium that will be held at Virginia Tech in 2020. Learn more
VetSet2Go Project Final Report Published
The VetSet2Go project, a three-year Australian government-funded outcomes assessment program designed to ensure veterinary professional education is doing the best possible job in preparing graduates for success in employment, has wrapped up its work. The program is detailed in a comprehensive 89-page report titled "Interpreting Employability in the Veterinary Context - A Guide & Framework for Veterinary Educators," which is available for download here. The project was a multi-national collaboration undertaken by 14 educators working at Murdoch University, the University of Queensland, the University of Adelaide, the University of Sydney, Washington State University in the United States and the University of Edinburgh and the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. It was led by Dr. Martin Cake, an associate professor at the University of Murdoch. Learn more
Academic Veterinary Medicine in the News

How Tuskegee University Educates 70% of African-American Veterinarians in the U.S.
Alabama Newscenter
Your Gift to the Future
Today's Veterinary Business
Former AVMA President Rene Carlson Dies
Today's Veterinary Business
Zoetis, AAVMC Award 315 Veterinary Scholarships
Bovine Veterinarian
Pre-empting Zoonotic Disease Threats
JAVMA News 
UC Davis Veterinary School is Ranked No. 1 Again
Today's Veterinary Business
Researchers Explore Link Between Metal Exposure And Parkinson's Symptoms
Neuroscience News
Binge Drinking Changes Your DNA, and that Matters for Treating Addiction
Medical Xpress
Canine Cancers Linked to Lawn Care Chemicals
Health News Digest
Purdue Engineers Develop Tiny Glutamate Sensors for Spinal Cord Injuries
Medicine News Line
Kansas State University Study Confirms that African Swine Fever is Transmitted Through Feed
Farmer and Rancher
A Bad Bout of Flu Triggers 'Taste Bud Cells' to Grow in the Lungs
Science Daily
Blood Infections Need to be Treated Fast
Greensburg Daily News
New Angle of Attack Drives Cellular HIV-reservoirs to Self-destruction
Research and Development

From Our Members
Hackathon Looks to Solve Animal Health Issues
Cornell University
Texas A&M Superfund Center Director Testifies in Congress on EPA's Chemical Assessments
Texas A&M
USask Team Developing Unique Harness to Help Save Injured Horses
University of Saskatchewan
Disease-fighting Milk
University of Guelph
USask Awarded CFI Funding to Research new Antibiotics and Food Products
University of Saskatchewan
Tufts University, Tufts Medical Center Launch Center for Study of Antimicrobial Resistance
Tufts University
To see a news feed featuring breaking news from our member institutions, please click here.

People in Motion  

Dr. Bryan Slinker, dean of the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine, plans to step down at the end of 2019, after serving 11 years. A search will launch later this spring.

Dr. Jim Lloyd, dean of the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, has announced plans to retire. A search for a new dean is underway.

Dr. Julie Funk, formerly an associate dean at the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine, has begun serving as the founding dean for the University of Arizona's developing college of veterinary medicine.
AAVMC Newsletters

 

Association of American Veterinary
Medical Colleges
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