Former AVMA President Dr. Lori Teller honored with 2025 AVMA Award

(SCHAUMBURG, Illinois) July 2, 2025—The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has honored former AVMA President Dr. Lori Teller with the 2025 AVMA Award. Established in 1931, this award recognizes distinguished members of the association who have contributed to the advancement of veterinary medicine in its organizational aspects, exerting outstanding leadership in building stronger local, state or regional associations, or contributing to the improvement of the national organization.

"Dr. Teller’s legacy of leadership and mentorship has elevated every corner of the veterinary profession," said Dr. Sandra Faeh, president of the AVMA. "From advancing telemedicine and advocating for veterinary access to care, to guiding future leaders and strengthening our national organization, Lori’s impact is both profound and enduring. She exemplifies the spirit of service that this award was created to honor."

A 1990 graduate of the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Dr. Teller’s career in organized veterinary medicine began locally with the Harris County Veterinary Medical Association and the Texas Veterinary Medical Association, where she was persuaded to step forward and serve for "just a short term" on the TVMA Board of Directors. What started with reluctance grew into a lifelong passion for leadership and service that saw her take on ever-increasing responsibilities within veterinary medicine.

Her leadership path quickly expanded through the TVMA, where Dr. Teller served on numerous TVMA committees and task forces before eventually serving as the organization’s president in 2010. During her time in TVMA leadership, she co-developed the state's first Certified Veterinary Assistants (CVA) program, a landmark achievement in organizational development. Her contributions have been recognized with TVMA President’s Awards in 2007, 2009, 2016 and 2024.

Dr. Teller has held numerous influential roles within the AVMA, including as chair of the State Advocacy Committee, alternate delegate for Texas in the HOD and District 8 representative on the AVMA Board of Directors. Dr. Teller eventually was elected as the 2022-23 AVMA president, and later as chair of the American Veterinary Medical Foundation. As AVMA president, she was a tireless advocate for veterinary medicine, speaking in front of state and allied organizations around the world, testifying before Congress and regularly appearing in the media to ensure the profession's voice was heard on critical issues.

Throughout her career, Dr. Teller has been a forward-thinking champion for the profession. She is a nationally recognized expert in veterinary telehealth, leading Texas A&M’s VirtualVet telemedicine program and helping other state associations address telemedicine while protecting animal health and welfare. A dedicated advocate for leadership development, Dr. Teller was a co-founder of the Women’s Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative (WVLDI), an organization dedicated to helping more women ascend to leadership roles in the profession.

Currently a clinical professor at Texas A&M, Dr. Teller continues to invest in the future of the profession by teaching and mentoring students, residents and junior faculty members. Her work has been recognized with numerous honors, including the KTRH 740 AM Everyday Hero Award (1999), being named one of the “14 veterinarians to watch in 2014” by Veterinary Practice News, the American Veterinary Medical Foundation’s PAWS Award for service during Hurricane Harvey (2018) and the Southwest Veterinary Symposium Visionary Award (2019).

"I am very honored and humbled to receive the AVMA award," said Dr. Teller. "This award represents the encouragement, support and mentorship of so many people who've believed in me throughout my career. There is not room to thank them all here, and I hope they know how much I appreciate what they've done for me. Organized veterinary medicine serves as the voice of the profession and provides many opportunities to serve our colleagues and teams, our clients, our patients and veterinary medicine as a whole. I have been privileged to play a small role in this and hope to spend the remainder of my career paying it forward. Words cannot adequately express what this award means to me."

To learn more about the AVMA Award and past recipients, visit www.avma.org/awards.

For more information, contact Michael San Filippo, media relations manager, at 847-732-6194 (cell) or msanfilippoavma [dot] org (msanfilippo[at]avma[dot]org).