Do you know an AASV member whose dedication to the association and the swine industry is worthy of recognition? A practitioner who goes above and beyond in providing service to clients? A young swine vet who is already leading the way? An academic whose teaching and research is making a difference? Now is the time to speak up! The AASV Awards Committee requests nominations for six awards to be presented at the 54th AASV Annual Meeting.
Are you wondering who has been recognized in the past? See aasv.org/aasv/awards for a list of previous recipients of the following awards.
Howard Dunne Memorial Award – Given annually to an AASV member who has made a significant contribution and rendered outstanding service to the AASV and the swine industry.
Meritorious Service Award – Given annually to an individual who has consistently given time and effort to the association in the area of service to AASV members, officers, and staff.
Swine Practitioner of the Year – Given annually to the swine practitioner (AASV member) who has demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency in the delivery of veterinary service to his or her clients.
Technical Services/Allied Industry Veterinarian of the Year – Given annually to the technical services or allied industry veterinarian who has demonstrated an unusual degree of proficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of veterinary service to his or her company and its clients as well as given tirelessly in service to the AASV and the swine industry.
Outstanding Swine Academic of the Year – Given annually to an AASV member employed in academia who has demonstrated excellence in teaching, research, and service to the swine veterinary profession. Faculty members, graduate students, and researchers are eligible to receive this award.
Young Swine Veterinarian of the Year – Given annually to a swine veterinarian who is an AASV member, 5 years or less post graduation, who has demonstrated the ideals of exemplary service and proficiency early in their career.
Nominations are due December 15. The nomination letter should specify the award and cite the qualifications of the candidate for the award. Submit to AASV by mail, 830 26th Street, Perry, Iowa 50220, or by email, aasv@aasv.org.
USDA-NIFA grant supports AASV’s participant-led, early-career swine veterinarian development program
The US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) has announced the awarding of an Education, Extension, and Training grant in the amount of $202,548 to the American Association of Swine Veterinarians. The grant will fund a participant-led, early-career swine veterinarian development program. It is one of 20 Veterinary Service Grants Program (VSGP) awards intended to help mitigate food-animal veterinary service shortages in the United States.
Although swine veterinarians are critical to maintaining a healthy, secure, and safe pork supply, many veterinary colleges in the United States have a limited swine caseload and curriculum. It is therefore difficult for veterinary students to obtain a comprehensive swine medicine education that addresses complex and regional food safety and animal welfare concerns and regulations. Without easily accessible and affordable post-graduate training opportunities, early-career swine veterinarians may be predisposed to career burnout and leave food-animal practice or the veterinary profession early. The AASV Early Career Committee identified the need for additional nondegree educational coursework and training for swine veterinarians early in their careers and applied for the grant to address this need.
The AASV Early Career Committee’s goal is to create a practitioner-led, early-career swine veterinarian development program to provide participants with resources needed to encourage and ensure successful, lifelong careers as swine veterinarians and to cultivate new leaders in swine veterinary medicine. The AASV will provide information and resources that support early-career swine veterinarians, as identified by the program participants. Coursework and training will be delivered through educational modules administered to up to 25 AASV-member, early-career swine veterinarians who are 1 to 5 years post graduation, with preference given to current or previous Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program recipients or those serving in a USDA-NIFA-designated veterinary shortage situation.
This program is expected to directly address veterinary shortage situations by providing nondegree educational coursework and training to veterinarians who provide services to swine in at least 50% of their practice time.
The goals of the USDA-NIFA VSGP are to support food animal veterinary medicine through Education, Extension, and Training funds for accredited schools and organizations and through Rural Practice Enhancement funds for veterinary clinics that provide services in areas with a veterinary shortage situation. This program is designed to support education and extension activities that will enable veterinarians, veterinary students, and veterinary technicians to gain specialized food-animal skills and practices. The 2014 Farm Bill authorized the establishment of the VSGP as a companion to the Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program to incentivize service in veterinary shortage situations. Ultimately, the VSGP will bolster the capacity of private veterinary practitioners to provide food-animal medicine in rural veterinarian shortage locations.
For more information, visit aasv.org.