His may not be a household name, but one day graduate student Cory Gresham’s work may benefit all of humankind. Gresham is one of the first two students admitted to the Veterinary Medical Scientist Training Program (D.V.M./Ph.D.) at UGA’s College of Veterinary Medicine. He works in the area of Comparative Medicine, with specific emphasis on developing and applying aquatic animal models relevant to human disease. For his undergraduate work, Gresham was a double-major Honors student at UGA, and he just finished his second year of vet school. For his Ph.D. work under Richard Winn, Gresham was recently awarded a prestigious university-wide graduate assistantship for two years. He also recently returned from a trip to Africa where he worked in the field on improved diagnostics for brucellosis. After graduation, he plans to continue working in pharmaceutical comparative medicine, and he wants to continue his research in Africa.
Hometown:
Georgetown, S.C.
High School:
Governors School for Science and Math
Degree objective:
D.V.M. and Ph.D. in Toxicology
Other degrees:
B.S., Genetics, University of Georgia, 2004
B.S., Microbiology, University of Georgia, 2004
Expected graduation:
Spring 2011
University highlights, achievements, awards and scholarships:
As an undergraduate, I was a CURO biomedical scholar, and I worked on a retrospective diagnostic test for canine distemper virus with Dr. Corrie Brown. I later worked on my Honors Program thesis, concerning multidrug resistant bacteria, with Susan Sanchez. I graduated from UGA Summa Cum Laude with honors in 2004 with a double major. I was a Merck-Merial summer scholar in 2005, during which time I researched drug-resistant horse parasites. I am one of the first two students to enter into the newly-created D.V.M./Ph.D. program at UGA. This past year, I received a university-wide toxicology scholarship for my graduate work. This spring, I wrote a grant that was funded by the G.R. Dodge Foundation to travel to Uganda and study cattle diseases that can transfer to humans. In this project, two fellow vet students and I were able to bring polymerase chain reaction technology to the pathology department in Uganda.
Current Employment:
I am currently employed as a graduate student at the Aquatic Biotechnology and Environmental Laboratory, headed by Richard Winn. My main focus at ABEL is to use fish as models for human diseases.
Family Ties to UGA:
My father graduated from what is now the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources at UGA in 1971.
I chose to attend UGA because…
…of the well-respected College of Veterinary Medicine and the excellent biology and genetics programs. I visited the CVM in high school and knew this is where I wanted to be in a few years.
My favorite things to do on campus are…
…to go to Georgia football games to watch the Dawgs play! I also enjoy walking my dogs on North Campus in the evenings and playing intramural football and tennis.
When I have free time, I like…
…kayaking local rivers, spending time with my two dogs and my foster dog, raising chickens, and surfing in South Carolina.
The craziest thing I’ve done is…
…go to Uganda. We got to bait and track hyenas, go on several safaris with Ugandan veterinary students, and raft down the Nile. We even had a hippo roam through the camp one night.
My favorite place to study is…
…my lab because it’s quiet. It is located in Whitehall Forest, so there are plenty of places for study breaks. It’s also fun to study in the vet school because you can take breaks and help out with patient treatments in the animal hospital.
My favorite professor is…
…Dr. Corrie Brown, no doubt. I love her boundless enthusiasm and optimism! I think that she could have a successful career almost anywhere, but she’s here because she truly enjoys helping her students. She’s been an inspiration to many students in the vet school. She’s also created a lot of research/travel/scholarship opportunities for students.
If I could share an afternoon with anyone, I would love to share it with…
…my grandfather. He passed when my brother and I were very young. I respect my father greatly, and he respects his father in the same way. I’d like to get to know the man behind the stories.
If I knew I could not fail, I would…
…probably be doing exactly what I’m doing right now.
After graduation, I plan to…
…continue working in comparative medicine probably in pharmaceuticals. I’m very interested in using animals to simulate human diseases and to find better treatments. I’d also like to do more research abroad…hopefully in Africa.
The one UGA experience I will always remember will be…
I can’t choose between two great memories. One was when my group’s first surgery patient awoke from anesthesia. It was a puppy that we spayed. She was very cute in a woozy kind of way. My other fond memory is of the countless walks on north campus with my (now) fiancee, Ashley. We met freshman year and went on dates in the gardens up there before I had a car.
