Dear Friends,
Happy New Year and welcome to spring semester at the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. We are preparing to receive students back on campus with classes beginning on Jan. 22, so this is a very busy time for the College’s faculty and staff as we get ready for the new academic semester.
We kicked off the New Year with the College’s 69th Annual Conference for Veterinarians and the 18th Annual Veterinary Technician Program, which were held from Jan. 5-7 at the Lory Student Center on the Colorado State University Campus.
The keynote speaker for the conference was our own Dr. Dean Hendrickson, a Professor of Equine Surgery at the James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Dr. Hendrickson captivated the audience with tales from his elephant experiences in South Africa. Dr. Hendrickson, along with a team of veterinarians from Disney’s Animal Programs and San Diego Wild Animal Park, is working with wildlife biologists researching effective methods of sterilization for elephants to control their overpopulation in South Africa.
The DVM Class of 1988 came together during the conference for a number of special events. Special thanks to Dr. Rick Leone and his wife Trish for organizing a dinner at the Cottonwood Grill, and thanks to Dr. Linda Vapp for hosting an event in her home and organizing a tour of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital. It was the College’s pleasure to host a dinner and reception for the DVM Class of 1998 at the Hilton Hotel, in honor of their 10-year reunion. Thanks to everyone who attended the conference and to our sponsors who underwrote special events. I’d also like to thank conference organizers who worked assiduously to bring together a program that offered so many valuable educational experiences for veterinarians and veterinary technicians alike.
With the 69th Annual Conference behind us, I’m next looking forward to traveling to Sanibel Island in Florida later this month for an informal meeting of deans from veterinary schools in the United States and Canada. At the meeting we’ll share our “best practices” and focus on three critical areas for veterinary medicine: recruitment of veterinary medical students, staffing of veterinary teaching hospitals and diagnostic laboratories, and pending federal legislation to construct new facilities for professional veterinary medical programs. It’s been my privilege to organize the meeting this year in my capacity as immediate past president of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges and I look forward to collaborating with my fellow deans on issues important to the advancement of veterinary medicine.
I wish you the very best in 2008 and look forward to a productive year together.
Best Regards,
Lance Perryman, DVM, PhD
Dean, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
