Leading social scientist and author Scott Page will present a keynote address at the 2019 AAVMC Conference and Iverson Bell Symposium in Washington, D.C. March 8-10, 2019. Registration is now open for the AAVMC's 2019 Annual Conference, which will be presented at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill. Page is one of the world's leading experts on improving collective performance and decision-making through diversity. His new book "The Model Thinker: What you Need to Know to Make Data Work for You" is due out November 27, 2018. Read more.

	University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Dean Dr. Peter Constable addresses the AVMA Economic Summit.

Leaders from the organized, academic and practicing veterinary medical communities recently gathered in Schaumburg for the 2018 AVMA Economic Summit. Academic veterinary medicine was represented during presentations made by AAVMC Senior Director for Institutional Research and Diversity Dr. Lisa Greenhill and University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Dean Dr. Peter Constable. Greenhill shared insights regarding the applicant pool and financial literacy gleaned from her primary and secondary research, and Constable shared comments from the perspective of a college dean. Read more.

Three AAVMC member institutions have been awarded the 2018 Health Professions Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award. The prestigious award recognizes excellence in programs designed to create greater diversity and inclusion. Honorees include colleges of veterinary medicine at Michigan State University, Texas A&M University and The Ohio State University. "We congratulate these colleges for earning this prestigious award," said AAVMC Chief Executive Officer Dr. Andrew T. Maccabe. "The honor achieved by these three members also reflects the commitment all of our members have to building diversity and inclusion on campus, and in turn fostering institutional excellence." Read more.

Membership in the prestigious National Academies of Medicine is limited to physicians, veterinarians and other health professionals who have reached the highest levels of professional achievement and distinguished service. Of the 2,131 current members of the National Academy of Medicine, 22 are veterinarians. Given the fact that veterinarians contribute so profoundly to human health and wellbeing, there is a case to be made that more could be included within the ranks of the NAM, according to Dr. Michael D. Lairmore, dean of the University of California - Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and AAVMC President-Elect. Read more.

Leaders of the AAVMC's Council for International Veterinary Medical Education (CIVME) gathered at the University of Utrecht in The Netherlands in late October for their Fall Meeting. During the Utrecht meeting, CIVME leaders agreed to prepare a proposal for future funding for the AAVMC board of directors to consider and discussed other funding options from external organizations that are also interested in elevating the quality of academic veterinary medicine in areas of the world that do not require professional accreditation for veterinary medicine. The group held a variety of discussions regarding developing and existing programs during the meeting. Read more.

Four AAVMC member institutions and one affiliate are among the universities funded during the most recent distribution of Veterinary Service Grants Program (VSGP) Awards. Those include the University of Georgia, Iowa State University, Texas A&M University, Michigan State University, and Pennsylvania State University (affiliate). This program is designed to support education and extension activities that enable veterinarians, veterinary students, and veterinary technicians to gain specialized skills and practices. The Agricultural Act of 2014 authorized the establishment of the VSGP as a companion to the Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program to incentivize service in areas underserved by veterinarians. Read more.

The AAVMC's board of directors approved a major reorganization of the Admissions and Recruitment Committee (ARC) during their October meeting. The ARC now includes an ARC Strategic Group, an Operations Working Group, and an Outreach & Recruitment Working Group. Each of the groups will have five total members, including four from the United States and one from international members. The reorganization of the committee was undertaken to better focus the ARC's operations, projects and initiatives based upon the various skills and experiences of its members. Read more.

The AAVMC's 2018 Annual Report has been published. The 20-page report is themed "Forward Motion" and includes updates on major program areas like admissions and recruitment, health and wellness, diversity and inclusion, educational debt and other areas. Programmatic activity within each of the AAVMC's enterprise-wide initiatives to Analyze, Catalyze and Advocate are also detailed. The report contains several infographics summarizing key data on application trends, graduation, enrollment and student debt. The report also contains an annual financial report. Read the report.

Member institutions are reminded that the student application deadline for the annual Zoetis Veterinary Student Scholarship Award program is November 28, 2018. Click here for detailed application information. The program provides $2,000 scholarships for second- and third-year veterinary students enrolled at colleges and schools in the United States and Caribbean. The scholarships are awarded based on academic excellence, financial need, diversity, sustainability, leadership and career interest. Scholarships are available to students in all areas of professional interest, including food animal medicine, small animal clinical medicine, research, government services, public health, and organized veterinary medicine. Now in its 10th year, the Zoetis Veterinary Scholarship program has awarded over 3,000 scholarships totaling over $6 million. Winners will be announced during the 2019 SAVMA Symposium at the University of Georgia March 9-11, 2019.

Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine is the recipient of $15 million in funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to establish a Feed the Future Innovation Lab on Fish. Created as part of the bipartisan Global Food Security Act of 2016, the federal government's " Feed the Future Innovation Labs" leverage the strengths of top U.S. universities in addressing challenges in agriculture, food security and nutrition. There are 24 of the programs. The grant will help MSU-CVM build and apply the benefits of their extensive aquaculture programs. Read more.

The Veterinary Debt Initiative (VDI), an organization that includes representatives from the AVMA, the AAVMC and the Veterinary Medical Association Executives (VMAE), is making progress in several key areas. The VDI is holding monthly virtual and/or actual meetings and is approaching its work in four specific areas of activity: Get the Word Out, Advocacy, Development of Resources, and Research and Metrics. Click here to read a periodic newsletter that is chronicling their progress. Read more.

AAVMC member institutions working on the prevention, detection and response to infectious disease threats are invited to consider participating in one of two pre-application conferences being organized by the United States Agency for International Development's (USAID) Emerging Threats Division. Those conferences will be held on November 29, 2018, in Washington, D.C., and on December 7, 2018, in London. During the meetings, USAID officials will discuss details of an upcoming Request for Information (RFI) which will solicit stakeholder input on a proposed $85 million "One Health Workforce (OHW) Next Generation" program. For more information, click here and then on the highlighted opportunity number. Read more.

Faculty, interns and residents at AAVMC member institutions are invited to apply for one of the World Veterinary Association Global Animal Welfare Awards. The deadline for applications is November 19, 2018. Because applications must be submitted to the WVA by a constituent member association of the WVA, the AVMA is coordinating U.S. and Canadian submissions. This year, the WVA will be selecting one veterinary student from nominations received from around the world to receive the first WVA Student Animal Welfare Award. For more information, contact Dr. Beth Sabin, AVMA director of global outreach, at [email protected] or 847-285-6711. Read more.

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