Marsden, McGill run for District IX seat on AVMA Board
Drs. Melanie A. Marsden and Lawrence D. McGill want to represent AVMA members in District IX on the Board of Directors. They are candidates hoping to succeed Dr. Michael Whitehair when his service on the Board ends this July.
Throughout March, AVMA members living in Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Utah can vote for their new Board representative. Members with valid email addresses have received an email with a link to cast their votes electronically. Voters must respond by March 31 to be included in the electronic tabulation results. Paper ballots were distributed to AVMA members for whom the AVMA does not have valid email addresses, and they must be received back by March 31. The election winner will be announced in early April.
Dr. Marsden is a 1994 graduate of the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and owner of a small animal−exotic animal practice in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She served on a committee of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, reviewing rules and regulations for captive wildlife, and on the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies' Board of Pharmacy, helping to write the state's prescription drug monitoring plan to protect veterinarians from unreasonable reporting requirements.
Dr. Marsden represents Colorado in the AVMA House of Delegates and was a member of the House Advisory Committee. She contributed to the creation of the HOD's Veterinary Information Forum as well as the current program allowing direct email communication four times a year from delegates to AVMA members in their states. Additionally, she was an observer for the AVMA accreditation review of and site visit to the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences and a full participant in a Colorado Academy of Veterinary Technology site visit. A past president of the Colorado VMA, Dr. Marsden continues to serve on the CVMA executive committee.
"I will be part of the solution, working with veterinarians in our six states and nationally to help build the bridges needed, to expand the networks of support, and further the progress that keeps our members and profession vibrant, relevant, and vital to a rapidly changing world," Dr. Marsden said.
Dr. McGill earned his DVM degree from Oklahoma State University in 1968 and a doctorate in veterinary pathology from Texas A&M University. He has been involved with private veterinary diagnostic work for more than 40 years in Salt Lake City.
He has participated in the AVMA since 1999 as a member of the now-sunset Council on Public Relations, which he chaired. Dr. McGill has also served on the Task Force on Communications and the Member Services and Governance Performance Review committees, chairing the latter two entities for a year. He currently is a member of the Task Force on Volunteer Engagement.
Dr. McGill has also been active with the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners and the Utah VMA, for which he is a past president, treasurer, and board of directors member. Since 2016, he has been editor-in-chief of the journal Advances in Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, for which he was also section editor for clinical and anatomic pathology from 2004-16.
"It is my opinion that many of the 91,000 members of AVMA are unfamiliar with the benefits available with AVMA membership," Dr. McGill said. "Fantastic communications and resources exist. There is up-to-date information for member and practice health and wellness issues. AVMA needs to be more visible to our members and the public. All my work with AVMA committees has stressed transparency and member communications. These labors will continue, if (I'm) elected."