Athens, Ga. – A veterinarian from Brooklyn, N.Y., who founded the borough’s first and only emergency and specialty veterinary hospital, is this year’s recipient of the Young Achiever Award, presented by the Alumni Association of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine.
Brett Levitzke (DVM ’00) was recognized for his veterinary and entrepreneurial achievements at an awards ceremony held March 26, during the college’s 48th Annual Veterinary Conference and Alumni Weekend.Levitzke is the founder and medical director for Veterinary Emergency and Referral Group.For the last two consecutive years, he has made the UGA Alumni Association’s “Bulldog 100” list of alumni who own the fastest growing businesses in the United States.
VERG, founded in 2005, has grown into a practice of more than 20 veterinary specialists; it now includes a second location in Brooklyn and another hospital in Rome, Italy.Levitzke and his fellow veterinary specialists also are mentoring future veterinary specialists by helping train residents and interns from around the world.
Levitzke also is known locally as a veterinarian who aids law enforcement’s efforts to prosecute cases of animal cruelty by providing forensics support and expert testimony.In April 2010, he was honored by the Kings County, N.Y., district attorney’s office for help he has provided to law enforcement officials and animal victims in his community.
The college’s alumni association recognizes one Young Achiever each spring.Nominees must have graduated from the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine within the last 10 years and made contributions in one or more of the following areas:
- Animal and human health related public service;
- Professional service;
- Involvement in veterinary educational research and/or service;
- Contributions to the local community, state or nation;
- Involvement in veterinary associations at the local, state or national level; and,
- Contributions to the College’s Alumni Association.
The UGA College of Veterinary Medicine, founded in 1946, is dedicated to training future veterinarians, to conducting research related to animal and human diseases, and to providing veterinary services for animals and their owners.Research efforts are aimed at enhancing the quality of life for animals and people, improving the productivity of poultry and livestock, and preserving a healthy interface between wildlife and people in the environment they share.The college enrolls 102 students each fall out of more than 560 who apply.For more information, see www.vet.uga.edu.
The current UGA College of Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital, built in 1979, serves more than 18,000 patients per year in one of the smallest teaching hospitals in the United States.The college is currently working to raise $15 million toward building a new Veterinary Medical Learning Center, which will include a new teaching hospital as well as classrooms and laboratories that will allow for the education of more veterinarians.The goal is to increase enrollment to 150 when the Veterinary Medical Learning Center is built.For more information, see http://www.vet.uga.edu/giving/campaign.php.
For more information about the Alumni Association of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, see http://vet.uga.edu/alumni/.
