Greetings, all,
As I write this, I first want to acknowledge some very big news that many of you are already aware of. On Sept. 13, after five consecutive years of ascension, the University of Florida was ranked among the nation’s the top five public universities by U.S. News & World report, a huge milestone in the university’s history.
Our college’s roots are deep as part of both UF Health and UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. Being a part of UF as a whole has positioned the College of Veterinary Medicine uniquely among veterinary colleges in the country — most of which do not have both a world-class health center and a land-grant university designation — to be able to leverage the University of Florida’s diverse resources in order to further initiatives aimed at advancing animal, human and environmental health. The new top five ranking is an achievement all of us can be proud of and a testament to the hard work, focus and commitment of so many engaged in the important work of our university at many different levels.
We have several administrative updates I’d like to make note of. Dr. Dianne McFarlane has accepted the position of large animal clinical sciences department chair and will be joining our UF family on Dec. 15. A talented large animal medicine specialist and scientist with interests in equine endocrine disease, Dr. McFarlane will be a great addition to our leadership team and I look forward to welcoming her to our CVM campus. I’d also like to sincerely thank Dr. David Freeman for serving as interim chair of LACS for the past several months and for assisting in this transition.
After 10 years of leading the college’s department of physiological sciences, Dr. Paul Cooke will be stepping down from his administrative post effective Nov. 1. We have been so lucky to have benefited from his leadership, both as a college and at the departmental level over the past decade, and I am pleased he will remain on the faculty and will continue to pursue his research and other professional interests with his colleagues here at UF and elsewhere. Dr. Nancy Denslow, a professor in the department of physiological sciences and in the Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology with a joint appointment in the department of biochemistry and molecular biology at UF, has agreed to serve as interim chair while the college conducts a national search for Dr. Cooke’s replacement.
A national search is underway for candidates to fill the associate dean for clinical services position now held on an interim basis by Dr. Chris Sanchez.
Working with our Office of Advancement and Alumni Affairs, I am also making several recommendations to change our current structure for alumni relations, aimed at enhancing inclusivity. On Oct. 15, I met separately with members of the current Alumni Council and Executive Board to present these recommendations, which in short, involve a plan for dissolution of both the council and the board, preserving only the Alumni Association of the UF College of Veterinary Medicine. The changes I am recommending will allow us to be more inclusive and welcoming to all alumni, enhancing our ability to better meet them at the level of engagement they feel most comfortable. I hope to be able to share the final outcome of these recommendations by the end of December.
As always, I am grateful to all of you who are a part of our college for your ongoing contributions to strengthen the impact we have on all of our stakeholders, and for never forgetting to be kind to others. Our collective ability to weather challenges has never been in question, but I want to remind everyone how important it is to take care of yourselves.
-Dana
Dana N. Zimmel, D.V.M.
Professor and Dean