Accolades

American Association of Swine Veterinarians

The American Association of Swine Veterinarians honored six practitioners with awards during a reception March 9 at the AASV annual meeting in Dallas. The AASV Foundation also presented monetary awards to 15 veterinary students.

Dr. John T. Waddell (IL '81) received the Swine Practitioner of the Year Award. Dr. Waddell has been a food animal practitioner in Sutton, Neb., since 1981. He was president of the AASV in 2004 and served on the board of directors. For the AVMA, he is the alternate delegate from the AASV on the AVMA Legislative Advisory Committee, is a food animal medicine representative on the AVMA Council on Biologic and Therapeutic Agents, and is vice chair of the AVMA Clinical Practitioners Advisory Committee.

Dr. Alan B. Scheidt (PUR '76) received the Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year Award, which is given to swine industry veterinarians for proficiency and effectiveness in serving their companies, clients, the AASV, and the industry. Dr. Scheidt is the manager of swine technical services for Pfizer Animal Health and an adjunct professor at North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine. He served as AASV president in 1999.

Dr. Michael S. Pierdon (UP '05) received the Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year Award, which is awarded annually to an AASV member who has shown ideals of exemplary service and proficiency within five years of graduation. He has conducted research with Dr. Gary C. Althouse on bacterial growth curves and semen extenders. Dr. Pierdon, of Elizabethtown, Pa., owns Pierdon Swine Veterinary Services.

Dr. Rodney G. Johnson (MIN '70) received the AASV Meritorious Service Award for his work with the AASV and the AASV Foundation. He was president of the AASV in 1985. His work with the AASV Foundation has raised money through auctions and golf outings, and he and his wife's volunteer work has raised the foundation's visibility. Dr. Johnson is a trust representative for the AVMA PLIT.

Dr. Phillip C. Gauger (ISU '94) received the AASV Foundation Hogg Scholarship. The postdoctoral student in veterinary microbiology at Iowa State University received $10,000 through the award. Dr. Gauger is also a clinician in the Department of Veterinary Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine. He was previously a veterinary medical officer with the Department of Agriculture and a co-owner of a mixed animal practice.

Dr. Kent J. Schwartz (ISU '78) received the Howard Dunne Memorial Award, which recognizes AASV members for contributions and outstanding service to the association and industry. Dr. Schwartz is a veterinary diagnostician at Iowa State University's Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory and a member of the AASV board of directors and the AASV Swine Health Committee.

Brent Carmichael, a second-year veterinary student at Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine, received a $5,000 scholarship from the AASV Foundation for his presentation "Pre-colostral stillborn piglet blood sampling procedure when a PRRSv positive sow herd is being monitored for time-to-negative interval." Four other students received $2,500 each, five received $1,500, and five received $500.

Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges

During its annual meeting, March 12–16, the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges honored two members for their leadership and contributions to the association.

Dr. Bennie I. Osburn (KSU '61) was awarded the second AAVMC Senator John Melcher, DVM, Leadership in Public Policy Award. Dr. Osburn has served as dean of the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine since 1996 and as AAVMC president from 2003-2005. During his tenure, Dr. Osburn launched a national initiative to strengthen U.S. veterinary schools' infrastructure and implemented a public health task force, which has increased the number of joint or postgraduate public health programs. Dr. Osburn also steered the AAVMC's effort with the Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the U.S. military to rebuild veterinary colleges in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Dr. Keith W. Prasse (ISU '65) delivered the AAVMC Recognition Lecture. Dr. Prasse is dean emeritus of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. He was president of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists in 1985 and president of the AAVMC in 2003. The Recognition Lecture is an honor given annually by the AAVMC president to an individual whose leadership and vision have made a notable contribution to academic veterinary medicine and the veterinary profession. Between 2005 and 2007, Dr. Prasse assisted the AAVMC in its long-range planning efforts, which culminated in the publication of the Foresight Report and laid the groundwork for the association's strategic plan and the North American Veterinary Medical Education Consortium.

Oklahoma VMA

Dr. John G. Kirkpatrick (OKL '65) was named the 2009 Oklahoma Veterinarian of the Year by the Oklahoma VMA at its 94th annual convention in Oklahoma City, Okla. Dr. Kirkpatrick started a private, mixed animal veterinary practice in Shattuck, Okla., before joining Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health Sciences in 1992 where he held a number of faculty positions. In 1998, Dr. Kirkpatrick was named director of the center's Boren Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, a position he held until retiring in 2005.