The AAEP’s 58th annual convention brought together nearly 6,000 veterinarians, students, technicians and exhibitors to Anaheim, Calif. Dr. Dwyer is co-owner of Genesee Valley Equine Clinic in Scottsville, N.Y., and is renowned for her expertise in equine ophthalmology, the AAEP reported. She graduated from Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 1983 and joined the AAEP the following year. She served on the AAEP’s Problems Analysis, Nominating and Executive Director review committees, represented District 1 on the board of directors from 2006 to 2008 and joined the Executive Committee in 2010. In other convention business: G. Kent Carter, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM, was named the 2013 vice president and was inducted as a member of the AAEP Executive Committee. Dr. Carter, who is scheduled to assume the presidency in 2015, is a professor and chief of medicine at Texas A&M University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He graduated from Colorado State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 1979 and worked in private practice in Reno, Nev., before entering academia. He is a member of the International Equine Veterinarians Hall of Fame and the International Horseshoeing Hall of Fame. Christian Veterinary Mission, a faith-based coalition of veterinarians, received the Lavin Cup in honor of its efforts to improve the welfare of horses. Under the group’s Fast Horse Project, volunteers taught veterinary skills to veterinarians in Mongolia. Jill Johnson, DVM, received the Distinguished Educator Award. Dr. Johnson retired from Louisiana State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 2011 and continues to conduct research on blood typing/immunogenetics, GPS technology for racehorses and hospital-acquired salmonella infections in horses. Midge Leitch, VMD, Dipl. ACVS, was presented with the Distinguished Service Award. Dr. Leitch recently retired from the University of Pennsylvania’s New Bolton Center, where she was responsible for the Radiology Service. She joined the AAEP in 1973 and served on task forces, as a board member and as chairwoman of the Equine Welfare Committee from 2008 to 2010. Nat T. Messer, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, received the Distinguished Life Member Award for his commitment to leadership, education and welfare advocacy. Dr. Messer is a professor of equine medicine and surgery at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine. He was elected to the AAEP’s board of directors in 1996 and received the Distinguished Service Award in 2001. Colorado State University professor David Frisbie, DVM, Ph.D, Dipl. ACVS, was named to the board of directors as a director-at-large. A University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine graduate, Dr. Frisbie also works as a practicing partner at Equine Sports Medicine and as a senior scientist at the Orthopedic Research Center. Monty McInturff, DVM, co-owner of Tennessee Equine Hospital in Thompson’s Station, Tenn., joined the board of directors as the District 4 representative. A 1989 graduate of Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, he co-founded the Middle Tennessee Academy of Equine Practitioners, where he served as president from 1996 to 2000. Kenton Morgan, DVM, Dipl. ACT, was inducted as the District 6 representative on the AAEP board of directors. A 1983 graduate of the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine, he was an ambulatory veterinarian in Missouri and Kansas for 11 years before entering the pharmaceutical industry. Wendy Vaala, VMD, Dipl. ACVIM, will represent District 5 on the AAEP board of directors. Dr. Vaala, a 1990 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, has worked as senior equine technical veterinarian with Merck Animal Health since 2004, after eight years in private practice in New Jersey. In other news: University of Minnesota doctoral candidate Nichol Schultz, DVM, was named the 2012 AAEP Foundation Past Presidents’ Research Fellow on Monday for her work to advance equine veterinary research. The $5,000 grant is awarded annually to a doctoral or residency student who has made significant progress in the field of equine health care research. Texas A&M University master’s degree candidate Michelle C. Coleman, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, and Allen E. Page, DVM, a University of Kentucky Gluck Equine Research Center doctoral candidate, each received a $5,000 fellowship Monday to support their equine research. Eight veterinary students were awarded $2,500 scholarships Sunday from the AAEP Foundation and the insurance company Markel Corp. The fourth-year students are Ashley Banes of North Carolina State University, Lisa Coder of the University of Missouri, Alec Davern of the University of Georgia, Christine Fosnacht of Kansas State University, Laurel Lachowiez of Iowa State University, Sarah Pedersen of the University of Calgary, Kelsey Spell of Texas A&M University and Elizabeth Weber of the University of Florida. The AAEP Foundation serves as the charitable arm of the American Association of Equine Practitioners. The Lexington, Ky.-based association, which has nearly 10,000 members worldwide, will hold its 59th annual convention Dec. 7 to 11, 2013, in Nashville, Tenn. <HOME>
