Six Veterinary Students to Receive NPIF Internship Stipends

December 21, 2011 — AASV Staff

The AASV Foundation and AASV Student Recruitment Committee are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2011-12 National Pork Industry Foundation (NPIF) veterinary internship stipends. Six first- and second-year veterinary students were selected from a pool of 103 applicants to receive the $3300 stipends. Each NPIF intern has been linked with a volunteer practitioner-mentor with whom he or she will spend a one-month internship during the summer of 2012. The new interns and their mentors are:

Derek Adams, Iowa State University
Mentor: Dr. Nathan Schaefer, Iowa Select Farms

Brett Boyum, University of Minnesota
Mentor: Dr. Paul Armbrecht, Lake City Veterinary Service

Heather Kittrell, Louisiana State University
Mentor: Dr. Aaron Lower, Carthage Veterinary Service

Sarah Lackay, University of Georgia
Mentor: Dr. Scanlon Daniels, Circle H Headquarters

Brent Pepin, Iowa State University
Mentor: Dr. Megan Nemechek, Rensselaer Swine Service

Valarie Ujazdowski, University of Wisconsin
Mentor: Dr. Mark Engle, PIC

The NPIF veterinary internship stipend program is now in its fourth year. The stipend of $3300 per student defrays the cost of travel, lodging, and compensation during the one-month internship. Additionally, the interns are encouraged to utilize their practitioner-mentor as a resource throughout the year, and to attend the AASV Annual Meeting and Leman Swine Conference in an effort to increase their knowledge and exposure to swine medicine. Each intern submits a written report and evaluation upon completion of the program.

The AASV Student Recruitment Committee developed the NPIF veterinary internship stipend program in an effort to attract veterinary students to swine medicine and to provide interested students with exposure to the life of a swine veterinarian. The $20,000 funding for the program is provided by the National Pork Industry Foundation, a charitable corporation that promotes activities in the swine industry related to research and education. The funds are administered by the AASV Foundation.

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AASV staff contributed to or researched this story. For more information about the AASV, please visit http://www.aasv.org/.