Symposium for Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science Educators Set June 25-27 in Stephenville

Feb 22, 2024

By Rob Williams

The Texas A&M AgriLife Veterinary Science Certificate Program will host the ONE HERD Symposium June 25-27 in Stephenville, offering educators the opportunity to learn about veterinary and animal science topics.

The three-day event will be held at Tarleton State University, Registration is $500, and with three nights of dormitory lodging, it is $600. Seating is limited to 125 attendees. Register at https://tx.ag/VSCPOneHerd.

The theme for this year’s event is “Providing Opportunity” and will feature hands-on activities, expert talks and networking opportunities for participants.

Breakfast will be provided on the second and third day and lunch will be provided all three days of the symposium. There will also be networking dinners during the evenings of the first and second days.

Symposium goal

The Veterinary Science Certificate Program, VSCP, will offer three full days of sharing, learning and networking opportunities for animal science educators, said Nikki Boutwell, AgriLife Extension program specialist and VSCP coordinator in the Texas A&M Department of Animal Science, Bryan-College Station.

The symposium will provide training for teachers to develop and plan curriculum, teach veterinary science skills in the classroom and provide insight on preparing students to be exam-ready for certification.

Day 1 – June 25

Sessions during the first day will feature short course excursions in five disciplines, including beef cattle, dairy cattle, equine, wildlife and conservation, and beef market flow. During each session, participants will be able to learn both through classroom and hands-on experiences on each subject.

Participants will be divided into teams of five to six participants and will be tasked to create shareable educational resources that could be taken and used in their classrooms. All resources will be uploaded to an online repository so that all participants may benefit from the short course excursion discipline educational resources.

Day 2 and Day 3 – June 26-27

The second day will feature keynote speaker Tucker Brown, rancher, R.A. Brown Ranch, Throckmorton, while State Rep. Brad Buckley, Killeen, will be the plenary speaker during the morning session.

The third day will feature a theme talk by Dan Posey, DVM, clinical professor at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, who leads outreach efforts within the school’s Veterinary Education, Research and Outreach initiative in Canyon.

The afternoons on the second and third days will offer skills sessions on the following topics:

Career counseling for animal and veterinary services.
Scope and sequence of courses for veterinary science curriculum.
Funding: Federal, local and program sustainability.
What an agriculture teacher needs to know about the veterinary-client-patient relationship.
Ethics of show animal medicine.
Implementing new technology and electronic tools in the classroom.
Small animal essential and advanced veterinary skills.
Large animal essential and advanced veterinary skills.

Source : tamu.edu

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