At the annual American Association of Avian Pathologists (AAAP) meeting for poultry health experts and students in Washington, DC, the AAAP and co-sponsor American Veterinary Medicine Association (AVMA) announced their 2019 award winners.
Following four days of seminars and events, the two associations recognized eminent scholars in the field. Winners of these awards are selected by committee vote. We are proud to recognize the students and faculty members honored at this ceremony.
- Monique França, assistant professor in the Department of Population Health, was recognized with the Bayer-Snoeyenbos New Investigator Award, a prize honoring an independent investigator who has made significant contributions to science during the first seven years of their career. Dr. França’s research on avian pathology was also presented at the event’s scientific symposium.
- Hector Cervantes, adjunct professor of avian medicine in the Department of Population Health, was conferred the Lasher-Bottorf Award. This award recognizes Dr. Cervantes for his vast contributions to poultry health in North America throughout his career. Dr. Cervantes is also an inductee into the Latin American Poultry Industry Hall of Fame and has served as the president of the AAAP and the American College of Poultry Veterinarians.
- Carmen Jerry, recent graduate from the CVM Department of Pathology residency program, and Daniel Maekawa, first-year doctoral student in the Comparative Biomedical Sciences program, were recipients of the Reed Rumsey Award, a research and merit-based prize presented to up to two students in a given year. Jerry and Maekawa were also asked to present their research on avian influenza and virology respectively.
- Gustavo Schneiders (DVM ’16), a current graduate research assistant in the College of Agriculture and Environmental Science’s Department of Poultry Science, was awarded the P.P. Levine Award. This award is presented to the senior author of the best paper published in the AAAP’s international Journal, Avian Diseases, within the past year.
Three students were also presented scholarships: Valerie Marcano, fourth-year DVM student and doctoral student of pathology, and Lydia Anderson, fourth-year DVM student and doctoral student of infectious disease, were awarded the Merck Animal Health Scholarship; Valerie Marcano was also awarded the Association of Veterinarians in Egg Production (AVEP) Preceptorship Scholarship; and Nicholas Brown (DVM ’19) was awarded the Kenneth E. Eskelund Preceptorship Scholarship.
“This is a list of professionals who are doing exceptional things in the field,” said Lisa K. Nolan, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and poultry researcher herself. “The UGA CVM is truly leading the way in poultry medicine, and I am proud to work side by side with the faculty and students who have been recognized by the AAAP and AVMA for their contributions.”
The Poultry Diagnostic and Research Center (PDRC), housed in the College’s Department of Population Health, is the heart of avian health within the College of Veterinary Medicine. It is dedicated to the advancement of poultry medicine throughout our state, nation, and the world.
Faculty members in the PDRC offer course work for DVM students, oversee several graduate programs for veterinary professionals, and teach undergraduate courses in the UGA College of Agriculture. The PDRC’s research is focused on solving important issues challenging the poultry industry. The Center also provides diagnostic services and consultation to the world’s poultry producers.
