Welcome Back from the Dean

Dear CVM Community and Friends,

Welcome to a new CVM community newsletter! We are right at the beginning of our academic year, and it’s a good time to share with you recent news about hires and developments at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine.

After several days of orientation, the Class of 2019 participated in the traditional White Coat Ceremony this past Saturday at NC State’s McKimmon Center. I’m pleased to report that the Class of 2019 is the most diverse in the history of our College. Classes begin on August 12.

We are just putting the finishing touches on an extensive expansion of our anatomy lab, which has grown by 50% and boasts several new interactive design features to improve the learning environment. In addition, we have added several small group learning spaces throughout the College. One key new resource is an experiential communication training center with nine rooms equipped to help us train our students in client and group communication.

One of the most obvious changes for the new academic year is a major reworking of our web site. CVM.NCSU.EDU is more visual, streamlined, and interactive in keeping with recent changes in NC State brand standards. The primary goal of the web redesign project is make it easier for the College’s many external audiences to discover, learn, and further share important CVM information and resource. We have also updated the internal website. These changes are a work in progress, so keep the comments (constructive comments please!) coming, and we’ll keep trying to make it serve everyone better.
[feature_title color=”red”]Welcome Class of 2019! [/feature_title]

There were 905 applicants for the 100 seats. The class includes 76 women and 24 men and 80 are North Carolina residents. The 20 non-resident students come from 11 different states and Puerto Rico.

Most students hold Bachelor of Science degrees with one bachelor of music and one PhD in Genetics. While the most popular undergraduate majors were animal science (31) and biology (31), the class also includes students who majored in accounting/finance, biochemistry, chemistry, exercise science, genetics, history, music, sociology and zoology.

The 100 students graduated from 42 different universities, including 11 in North Carolina. NC State University is represented with 42 graduates.

We are excited to welcome them into our NC State Family!
[feature_title color=”red”]New Faculty & Staff [/feature_title]

The College has been fortunate to hire many new faculty and staff in the recent months, with several more set to join us in the year ahead. Here is some background on just three of the exceptional people who have joined our ranks:

• Andrew Stringer has been appointed director of the College’s Global Health Education Program, previously the CVM International Studies Program. In addition, Stringer also has a special appointment as the director of NC State’s Global Health Initiative, a campus effort to help students study, conduct research, and become involved in outreach activities that seek to improve health and well-being of people worldwide. Dr. Stringer, who joins the CVM Department of Population Health and Pathobiology as a clinical assistant professor, will develop comprehensive classroom and experiential learning activities that will provide DVM students the opportunity to become involved in and contribute to important global public health areas. The position also will be responsible for managing related program research and development activities. Dr. Stringer obtained a Bachelor of Veterinary Science (2005) and a Doctor of Philosophy (2012) from the University of Liverpool and has extensive experience in international veterinary medicine studies and outreach activities.

• Casey Theriot joins the Department of Population Health and Pathobiology as an assistant professor. Theriot will focus on infectious diseases and how antibiotics can alter gut microbiota and metabolome allowing C. difficile to colonize the gut. Her research interests include identifying the role of the gastrointestinal tract microbiome and metabolome in shaping colonization resistance against Clostridium difficile, physiology and pathogenesis of Clostridium difficile, and the metabolism of bile acids by the indigenous gastrointestinal microbiota. Theriot joins the College after serving as a research investigator with the Division of Infectious Disease in the University of Michigan’s Department of Internal Medicine since 2013. She was a postdoctoral research fellow in the department from 2010 to 2013. Theriot received a doctorate in microbiology from NC State in 2010 after serving as a microbiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Her undergraduate degree in environmental health science is from the University of Georgia.
• Jennifer (Jenna) Hartwell joins the College as Director of Career and Professional Development. Jenna will be working to identify and develop career and employment opportunities, assist with the professional development of our DVM students, and will work closely with faculty, alumni, and employers. Prior to her appointment, she spent two years as the student career counselor at the NC State College of Sciences. Originally from Amherst, Massachusetts, Hartwell received a bachelor’s degree in social science at Cazenovia College and a master’s degree in counselor education at NC State. Hartwell is the recipient of the North Carolina Association of Colleges and Employers Presidential Recognition Award, the Pride of the Wolfpack Award, and the National Academic Advising Association’s Outstanding New Advisor award.

In closing, I wish you a great start the academic year and we look forward to seeing you soon.

All the best,

D. Paul Lunn, BVSc, MS, PhD MRCVS, Dip. ACVIM
Dean, College of Veterinary Medicine