Accolades
Organizations
Dr. Lonnie King, dean of The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, received the 2012 Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges' Senator John Melcher, DVM Leadership in Public Policy Award, March 10 during the association's annual conference.
He is also a professor in the college's Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine and holds the Ruth Stanton Endowed Chair in Veterinary Medicine.
Dr. King's career includes leadership positions in academia and government. As administrator of the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, he was instrumental in the creation of the National Disease Detection System, now known as the National Animal Health Monitoring System.
As Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine dean from 1996-2006, Dr. King was a key driver in securing $58 million for new animal health diagnostic laboratory facilities at the college.
Dr. King left MSU when he was appointed the first director for the Office of Strategy and Innovation at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A year later, he became the first director of the National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases, where he served as the senior CDC veterinarian. Dr. King pioneered the one-health program at the CDC and established veterinary positions at the agency to ensure better linkages with human health.
In 2009, Dr. King returned to Ohio State, where he had received his DVM degree in 1970, as dean of the veterinary college. Recently he was also appointed executive dean for health services, overseeing seven health science colleges.
Additionally, Dr. King is a past president of the AAVMC and currently serves as the association's liaison to the AVMA Legislative Advisory Committee.
Government
Rear Adm. Linda K. Tollefson (IL '80) has assumed the role of associate commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine in the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Foods. Michael R. Taylor, FDA deputy commissioner for foods, named Dr. Tollefson to the position as his full deputy.
Dr. Tollefson served most recently in the FDA Office of International Programs as director of the regional office in Europe. She previously was FDA assistant commissioner for science, deputy director of the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine, director of the CVM Division of Voluntary Compliance and Hearings Development, and chief of the epidemiology branch in the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.