Athens, Ga. – Three faculty members have been appointed to recently endowed professorships in the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine.
Dr. Scott Brown, who heads the college’s department of small animal medicine and surgery, has been appointed the first James and Marjorie Waggoner Professor of Small Animal Studies; Dr. Andrew Parks, head of the department of large animal medicine, has been appointed the first Olive K. Britt-Paul E. Hoffman Professor of Large Animal Studies; and Dr. Frederick D. Quinn, head of the department of infectious diseases, has been appointed the first Athletic Association Professor of Infectious Disease.
The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved the endowed professorships earlier this year.
“We are grateful to Dr. Britt and the Waggoners for their generosity and vision in creating these professorships that will provide support to the large animal medicine and small animal medicine and surgery departments in perpetuity,” said Dr. Sheila W. Allen, dean of the college. “We also acknowledge the University of Georgia Athletic Association for supporting the research mission of the university through the creation of this professorship. Infectious disease research is a major focus on our campus and is so important to the well-being of animals and people in today’s society.”
Brown came to the college in 1982 to complete his internship and residency in small animal internal medicine. He received his veterinary degree from the University of Pennsylvania and is board certified by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He joined the faculty in 1989 as an assistant professor in the department of physiology and pharmacology. During his nearly three decades at the college, Brown has served as a faculty member, acting associate dean for academic affairs, and, since 2006, as department head of the department of small animal medicine and surgery. In 2003, he was selected as a Josiah Meigs Distinguished Professor in recognition for his excellent teaching skills. His research interests include nephrology and systemic hypertension.
The James and Marjorie Waggoner Professorship of Small Animal Studies was created by a gift from Dr. James Cowan Waggoner (D.V.M. 1969), a native of Ellenwood, and Marjorie Schear Waggoner, who was born in Shaker Heights, Ohio. Both are founding Presidents Club and annual Presidents Club members. James Waggoner has served on the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine Alumni Board.
Parks joined the college as an assistant professor in the department of large animal medicine and surgery in 1986 after receiving his master of science degree from Michigan State University; he has served as the department’s head since 2002. He received his veterinary degree from the University of Cambridge and is a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. His clinical interests include lameness in horses and cattle, diseases of the foot and abdominal surgery in horses and cattle.
The Olive K. Britt-Paul Hoffman Professorship of Large Animal Medicine was created by a gift from the estate of Dr. Olive Kendrick Britt (D.V.M. 1959), who wanted to commemorate her lasting friendship with her professor and mentor, Dr. Paul Hoffman. Britt was a pioneer for women in equine veterinary medicine. She was the first female intern in the large animal clinic at the University of Pennsylvania in 1959; two years later, she became the first veterinarian to specialize in equine medicine in the Richmond, Va., area. Hoffman specialized in equine locomotory diseases and taught at the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine for 42 years, until his retirement in 1995.
Quinn joined the college as head of the department of infectious diseases in 2001 from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He earned both his master of science and his Ph.D. from Indiana University. His research interests include Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other pathogenic mycobacteria of humans and animals. The Athletic Association Professorship of Infectious Diseases was created by a gift from the UGA Athletic Association to support infectious disease research at the University of Georgia.
The UGA College of Veterinary Medicine, founded in 1946, is dedicated to training future veterinarians, to conducting research related to animal 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 550 who apply. For more information, see http://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 U.S. 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. http://www.vet.uga.edu/giving/campaign.php
