06-25-07

In this issue

• College news

• • From the dean: CVM goals for the coming year

  • College hosts farewell reception for Dr. Jeff Klausner

  • Osborne/Hill's Chair in Nephrology and Urology funded

  • New on the Web: redesigned CVM home page, Equine Clinical Services, Large Animal Hospital, Memories Garden slide show

  • Veterinary Student Supply summer hours in force

• Calendar

• Faculty and staff news

• Student news

• In memory: Elisabeth McClellan

• Apartment available in exchange for care of cat

• Research news

• • Career Advancement Program for Clinical Research Scholars (CAPS) informational session is Friday

  • Normal dogs ages 7-12 needed for study

  • Clinical studies currently enrolling in the VMC

• Needs a home

• Bailey, a new blood donor cat

• Links

College news (top)

From the dean

By Trevor R. Ames, Interim Dean

CVM goals for the upcoming year
I hope that everyone's summer is off to a good start. I am very excited to be appointed interim dean by Dr. Frank Cerra and wanted to take this opportunity to communicate with the faculty, staff, and students of the College.

I have worked in the administration of the College for over nine years, and I am very optimistic for our future. It is a great honor to take over as interim dean for this time of transition.  The current collegiate leadership group has been together as a team for a number of years, and I look forward to working with this group to deal with the challenges and opportunities of the next year. The College is now ranked in the top 10 of veterinary colleges in the nation. There are many exciting initiatives and building projects underway that were spearheaded by Dean Jeffrey Klausner. On behalf of the College, I wish him well in his new position and thank him for his efforts over the past eight years.

Research to be a priority
In the upcoming year, a major emphasis for the College of Veterinary Medicine will be to develop strategies to grow our research programs. As state funding continues to decline, it is important for the College to look at other sources of revenue to support and enhance our programs. The College of Veterinary Medicine ranks well in the level of research funding received from industry and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but continues to lag in its funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

I am pleased to announce that Dr. Srirama Rao has been hired as our associate dean of research and will start his position in early September. This is an important first step to increase our competitiveness in the area of NIH funding and enhance our relationships within the Academic Health Center (AHC).

In addition, Shaun Kennedy, a Veterinary Population Medicine faculty member and current director of the National Center for Food Protection and Defense, will take a part-time collegiate role as director of partnerships and external relations starting July 1.  This will allow us to build on our current successes with federal agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security as well as with our many industry partners. The College will also continue to focus on strengthening its external partnerships including government agencies, industry partners, commodity groups, private donors, and other colleges and universities. These relationships have been vital to our teaching, outreach, and service missions. Shaun and Dr. Rao will work with the department chairs to continue to enhance our research relationships throughout the AHC and University and evolve our strategic vision for the research programs in the College of Veterinary Medicine. 

Enhancing our teaching programs
While strengthening our research programs will be a major focus, the College must also continue to enhance our teaching programs. The College has recently had an extensive review of its D.V.M. teaching programs by the Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Association and received positive feedback on our teaching and outcomes assessment efforts. We have also received approval from the AHC through our annual compact process to hire a teaching specialist to help faculty with innovative teaching methodologies and implement effective peer reviews of teaching. As interim dean, I will work with the recently reappointed associate dean of academic affairs, Laura Molgaard, and the department chairs to utilize this new position to enhance the learning experience for our students. 

An important initiative for collegiate admissions will be to expand our early decision process currently in place for VetFAST students to include more opportunities for students interested in food animal veterinary medicine, as well as to create a parallel opportunity for students with career goals in research. This is of vital importance to meet the needs of the state and the country and to create the future faculty researchers needed by our profession.

Ensuring financial viability
The College will need to continue to ensure the fiscal viability of all its service units if we hope to invest in enhancing our research opportunities. The Veterinary Medical Center, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, The Raptor Center, and Veterinary Continuing Education all have financial plans in place. They have been well-received by AHC leadership, but ongoing monitoring and adherence to these plans to ensure complete implementation is essential to the College's financial success.

I look forward to visiting with as many of the College's excellent faculty and staff as possible over the upcoming year. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any issues you wish to discuss, and thank you for all you do every day to improve the health of animals and people.

College hosts farewell reception for Dr. Jeff Klausner
Faculty, staff, donors, alumni, and guests packed the atrium of the Cargill Building on June 21 for a farewell reception for Dr. Jeffrey S. Klausner, who is headed to New York to become president and CEO of the Animal Medical Center (AMC). Dr. Klausner had been dean of the College since 1998. Remarks were presented by Dr. Trevor Ames, interim dean, U of M Regent Dallas Bohnsack, Dr. Frank Cerra, senior vice president for health sciences, Robert Liberman, vice chairman of the board of trustees of the AMC, Dr. Teresa Hershey, president elect of the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association, and Dr. Klausner, who received a standing ovation and was presented with a gift from the College by Jan Williams, director of communications.

Osborne/Hill's Chair in Nephrology and Urology funded
The College has established the Osborne/Hill’s Chair in Nephrology and Urology in honor of Dr. Carl Osborne, a leading authority in veterinary urology and longtime professor at the College. See the College's news release.

New on the Web
Check out the CVM's redesigned home page, new sites for Equine Clinical Services and the Large Animal Hospital, and a slide show about the 2007 Memories Garden event. The home page's "What's New" feature will include regular news updates from CVM Communications.

Veterinary Student Supply summer hours in force
Veterinary Student Supply (VSS) is now open Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from noon to 1 p.m. and by appointment, with the following exceptions:

• VSS will be closed June 25, 26, and 27

• VSS will be closed July 4

For an appointment, call 612-624-1702 or e-mail vssvth@umn.edu.

Calendar (top)

Monday, June 25

New Employee Orientation
8:30 a.m.-noon
458 Veterinary Medical Center

Thursday, June 28

Veterinary Clinical Sciences Grand Rounds

• Protein Losing Enteropathy in the Yorkshire Terrier Dog, presented by Dr. Susan Simmerson

• The Epidermal Lipid Barrier: What is It About the Skin that Lets the Allergens In? presented by Dr. Lisa Reiter

8 a.m.
125 Animal Science/Veterinary Medicine
Everyone is welcome to attend. Refreshments will be served.

Finding the Money to Manage the Mission: a Fiscal Year-End Wrap-up
Presented by Frank Cerra, Senior Vice President for Health Sciences
7:30-8:30 a.m.
Mayo Auditorim, Minneapolis Campus
Refreshments will be served.

Friday, June 29

Master's Thesis Defense Seminar
Protein Biomarkers for Acute Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Infection in Pigs
Presented by Josephine Gnanandarajah
Advisor: Dr. Michael Murtaugh
9:30 a.m.
215 Veterinary Science

Career Advancement Program for Clinical Research Scholars (CAPS) Informational Session
9-10 a.m.
A301 Mayo
Minneapolis Campus
CAPS application forms and eligibility and selection criteria are online at www.epi.umn.edu/CAPS.

Intern/Resident Farewell
Lunch: Noon-12:45 p.m.
Program: 12:45-1:30 p.m.
145 Veterinary Science (student lounge and lecture room)
Cost: $4/person (Make checks payable to Robert Hardy and turn them in to Nick, 305 VMC, Lori Schultz, C339 VMC, or Rachel Buckles, 225 VMC). Departing house officers are our guests.

College-wide Personal and Professional Development Time
Noon-1 p.m.

What's ahead

Independence Day holiday: July 4

Hill's Pet Food Orders due: July 6. Go to www.summationdata.com/hpn/Login.aspx

Molecular Biotechnology Workshop: July 9-13. For information, go to
http://www.cvm.umn.edu/outreach/events/mbtw-45e4451b44b0c.html
This workshop is also available for graduate student registration as CMB 5335, Molecular Biotechnology Laboratory for the Novice. For information on this course, go to            http://www.cvm.umn.edu/researchandgradprog/gradprog/cmb/courses/home.html.

Xcel Energy Raptor Bowl: July 11, 2-7 p.m., Brit's Pub, 1110 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis. Benefits The Raptor Center. For details, visit www.cvm.umn.edu/raptor/news/RaptorBowl2007.html

Professional Development Seminar: Conflict Management, Presented by Rosie Barry: July 13, noon-1 p.m., 280 Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory

Hill's Pet Food Distribution: July 19, 7:30-9:30 a.m. and noon-4 p.m., Gortner Avenue dock, Large Animal Hospital

• Go to the Academic Health Center's calendar of events.

• Go to the University of Minnesota campus events calendar.

Faculty and staff news (top)

Dr. Srirama Rao has been hired as the College's new associate dean of research and will start his position in early September.

Shaun Kennedy, Veterinary Population Medicine faculty member and current director of the National Center for Food Protection and Defense, will take a part-time collegiate role as director of partnerships and external relations starting July 1.

Dick Roback will be retiring from the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory on July 1.

Dr. Kay Faaberg of the Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences Department has left the College to take a position at the National Animal Disease Center in Ames, Iowa.

Student news (top)

In memory: Elisabeth McClellan
Elisabeth McClellan, one of the College's D.V.M. students, died suddenly last week. Elisabeth was a fourth-year student from St. George's University completing her rotation year at the College. Services were held on Friday in Laguna Niguel, Calif.

Apartment available in exchange for care of cat
Samala Van Hoomissen will be in Washington, D.C., from July 1-August 11 and would like to exchange the use of her Minneapolis apartment for the care of her cat, a healthy, 16-year-old domestic short-hair. The cat needs medication for IBD, but that is only one pill by mouth every other day. The apartment is located across the street from the Walker Art Center with access to major freeways (94, 394, 35W) only a half a block away. All utilities will be covered except for electricity. Samala can be reached at sammyv@mninter.net or 612-369-2008.

Research news (top)

Career Advancement Program for Clinical Research Scholars (CAPS) informational session is Friday
An information session about the Career Advancement Program for Clinical Research Scholars (CAPS) is scheduled for 9-10 a.m. in A301 Mayo on the Minneapolis campus. The CAPS program is designed for senior fellows and junior faculty to develop an academic career in clinical research. It includes 75 percent salary support, research funds, and other benefits for up to five years. All schools in the Academic Health Center and other departments that conduct clinical research (human research) are eligible to apply for the awards. The deadline for applications is October 1. CAPS application forms and eligibility and selection criteria are online at www.epi.umn.edu/CAPS.

Normal dogs aged 7-12 needed for study
Normal dogs between 7 and 12 years of age are needed for a study being conducted by Dr. Leslie Sharkey and Dr. Inese Berzina. The study involves exam, blood pressure, one blood sample, and follow-up calls for a year. The dogs need to have a normal medical history, not be on medications or supplements (except heartworm preventive), have a normal physical exam and serum creatinine level. Contact Dr. Leslie Sharkey at shark009@umn.edu or 612-624-6171 and Inese Berzina at berzi008@umn.edu or 612-626-5322.

Clinical studies underway in the VMC
For a list of clinical studies currently enrolling in the Veterinary Medical Center, visit the Clinical Investigation Center Web site at http://www.cvm.umn.edu/cic/current.

Needs a home (top)

Bailey, the new blood donor cat in the Veterinary Medical Center, is ready to go to a foster home. She is a cute and cuddly grey and white domestic short hair, feline leukemia and heartworm-negative and up-to-date on vaccinations. If you are
interested, please e-mail Dora at schro067@umn.edu or Beth at johns547@umn.edu

Links (top)

CVM This Week
Back issues of CVM This Week, from June 2004 to today's issue, are at          http://www.cvm.umn.edu/newsandevents/publications/cvmthisweek/home.html.

Hills pet food distribution program
Food ordering is now done online through the Hills online ordering system at https://www.summationdata.com/hpn. For more information about the Hill's Pet Food Distribution program, contact Katie Cartledge, cart0333@umn.edu, Jaime Nett, nett0049@umn.edu, or Alisha Leonard, leona156@umn.edu.

Housing
For information about student and off-campus housing, including a housing and roommate search service, go to http://www.housing.umn.edu/.

Job openings
For information about positions available at the College, visit  www.cvm.umn.edu/About/HumanResources/Employment  /. For detailed information about current job openings, how to apply, and application materials, go to the University of Minnesota Office of Human Resources at http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/employment/index.html.

The VMC Pulse
Issues are available online by logging in at  http://www.cvm.umn.edu/vmc/staffresources/Pulse.html.

University of Minnesota Legislative Network News
http://ga4.org/u_of_m_leg_net/notice-description.tcl?newsletter_id=8620389&r=

Veterinary conferences
Dates, places, and links for national and international veterinary conferences are on the College Web site at                                                      http://www.cvm.umn.edu/newsandevents/conferences/home.html.

Veterinary Medical Library
For information about the Veterinary Medical Library, including new acquisitions, visit http://www.vetmed.lib.umn.edu/news.

Veterinary Practice News
Did you know that you can get a free subscription? Subscribe (or renew) online at www.vetpracticenews.com.

CVM This Week is a weekly newsletter for faculty, staff, and students of the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. Please submit news and calendar items for next week's issue to Sue Kirchoff, editor, at kirch004@umn.edu before noon Friday.

The University of Minnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer.