Beckham chosen as dean of Kansas veterinary college

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Kansas State University has named Dr. Tammy R. Beckham dean of its College of Veterinary Medicine, effective Aug. 2. She succeeds Dr. Ralph Richardson, who will transition to a faculty position in the college after serving as dean since 1998 (see JAVMA, May 15, 2014).

Dr. Beckham
Dr. Tammy R. Beckham

Dr. Beckham currently is director of the Institute for Infectious Animal Diseases, a Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Center of Excellence based in College Station, Texas. Since 2010, she has led the institute’s multimillion-dollar research portfolio aimed at defending the nation from high-consequence foreign animal, emerging, and zoonotic diseases.

After joining the IIAD, Dr. Beckham continued to oversee the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, a position she held from 2008 until September 2014.

Additionally, Dr. Beckham was director of the Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, part of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York. Her responsibilities included managing the diagnosis of animal diseases, overseeing diagnostic test development for a nationwide animal health diagnostic system, and coordinating efforts with the DHS, National Animal Health Laboratory Network, and other entities.

“The positive momentum at Kansas State University is very exciting,” Dr. Beckham said. “I am honored to have been chosen to be the next dean, and I look forward to leading the College of Veterinary Medicine as we leverage that momentum to serve our stakeholders and work to become a Top 50 public research university by 2025.”

A graduate of Auburn University, Dr. Beckham earned her DVM degree in 1998. She also holds a doctorate in biomedical science from Auburn, received in 2001 when she was a captain in the U.S. Army. She served at the Army’s Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in Frederick, Maryland, where she helped develop improved techniques for detecting deadly pathogens such as Ebola and Marburg viruses.

Dr. Beckham is chair of the Foreign and Emerging Diseases Committee of the U.S. Animal Health Association and has served on many other committees within animal health and veterinary diagnostic associations throughout the United States. She also has been an adjunct professor in the Department of Veterinary Pathobiology at Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Services.

She has authored numerous articles in publications that include the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation, Journal of Clinical Microbiology, and Journal of Comparative Pathology and Laboratory Investigation. She routinely acts as a subject matter expert at international meetings and maintains partnerships with international scientists and world reference laboratories.