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September 15, 2020

Women candidates mark historic first for AVMA

Bransford and Teller are part of the first women-only race for AVMA presidency
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Two veteran AVMA volunteers are running for the 2022-23 AVMA presidency and are making history while doing it.

Dr.  Bransford
Dr. Grace Bransford
Dr. Teller
Dr. Lori Teller


Dr. Grace Bransford, immediate past vice president for the AVMA, and Dr. Lori Teller, newly elected chair of the AVMA Board of Directors, launched their candidacies during the AVMA House of Delegates’ virtual regular annual session on July 31.

Although the nomination period remains open until July 26, 2021, this is the first time in the AVMA’s nearly 160-year history that two women are competing for the presidency. Voting will occur next summer during the regular annual session of the HOD, with the winner elected as 2021-22 AVMA president-elect and next in line for the presidency.

Only three women have ascended to the office of AVMA president. Dr. Mary Beth Leininger was the first, in 1996. Next was Dr. Bonnie Beaver in 2004, followed by Dr. René Carlson in 2011. Since then, two women have run unsuccessfully for the AVMA presidency: Drs. Jan Strother in 2015 and Angela Demaree in 2017.

As a sign that the profession has shifted in recent decades from mostly male to female, women currently hold several leadership positions within the AVMA, including Board chair and vice chair, vice president, and executive vice president.

Dr. Bransford of Mill Valley, California, is a 1998 graduate of the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and a small animal practitioner in Marin County in the San Francisco Bay area.

The former AVMA vice president has been involved in AVMA volunteer leadership for the past 20 years, serving on numerous councils and committees, along with being a member of the AVMA’s 20/20 Commission and the Task Force on Governance and Membership Participation.

Prior to veterinary medicine, Dr. Bransford had a 10-year career in advertising and marketing, where she worked with some of the top consumer businesses, including Anheuser-Busch and Pepsi-Cola.

Speaking during the virtual HOD meeting, Dr. Bransford said, “We can work harder to make sure that our Association and our profession reflect the diversity of our country, and we can continually evaluate ourselves to see that we are considering the global collective and perspectives in our actions.”

The same day Dr. Teller announced her candidacy, the AVMA Board elected her as its chair. Dr. Teller is a clinical associate professor of telehealth at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, from which she graduated in 1990.

A board-certified diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in canine and feline practice, Dr. Teller practiced for several years at Meyerland Animal Clinic in Houston until joining the faculty at TAMU in 2018.

Three years earlier, Dr. Teller was elected District VIII representative on the AVMA Board, representing AVMA members living in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. She is a founding board member of the Women’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative, which is dedicated to helping develop female leaders in veterinary medicine.

During the virtual meeting, Dr. Teller said, “As president-elect of the AVMA, I can continue to help guide the Association to meet the needs of the profession and help us become more proactive in addressing current issues and those just over the horizon.”