Greetings —
As we turn the page into summer, last month’s commencement is still on my mind. It was amazing to once again be part of the SVM’s investiture, and I enjoyed the wonderful ceremony at Camp Randall. James Patterson’s advice to pursue meaningful work especially resonated with me. It is easy to see why UW-Madison’s more than 500,000 living alumni burst with Badger pride!
I want to extend a warm welcome to Valeria Reyes Ruiz, who starts today as a tenure-track assistant professor in the Dept. of Pathobiological Sciences.
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Last month, I joined Woojeong Shin (DVMx’28), left, and Sidney Steiner (DVMx’28), center left, as well as Outreach and Community Engagement Manager Richard Barajas, at the Bell Midwest Regional Veterinary Leadership Summit in Columbus, Ohio.
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Reyes Ruiz joins us from Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute fellow and her research focuses on finding new ways for the body’s immune cells to naturally fight off certain bacteria and in turn develop new ways to treat or prevent infections. Reyes Ruiz will work with both DVM and graduate students.
I’m also looking forward to VetEd AAVMC, which is being hosted here at UW-Madison this week. The event brings together teaching professionals who are passionate about advancing excellence in veterinary medical education for three days of collaboration and exploring new practices. I’m excited to welcome many of our colleagues in the veterinary medical field to Madison, and I want to thank Margene Anderson — among many others — for the hard work that is bringing this event to life.
Shortly after commencement last month, Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin departed UW to take on the role of president of Columbia University. I wish her well and appreciate her support for the SVM during her time in Madison. I also want to extend a warm welcome to interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots, who stepped into the role last month. I’m looking forward to working more closely with Eric and thank him for his leadership during this time of transition for our great university.
Until next time…
On, Wisconsin!
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- Virginia Mathu (McLellan Lab) and Shariful Islam (Ahmad Lab) recently received travel awards from the Comparative Biomedical Sciences Graduate program. Mathu attended the 2026 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology Annual Meeting and presented her poster, titled “Optic Nerve Damage Worsens Visual and Cognitive Functional Outcomes in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease.” Islam attended the 2026 Society of Investigative Dermatology Annual Meeting and presented his poster, “The potential tumor promoter function of SIRT4 in human melanoma.” Well done!
- Kim Keil Stietz (PhD’14; Dept. of Comparative Biosciences) was recently promoted to associate professor with tenure. Congratulations!
- Representatives from UW Vet Med, including Dean Jon Levine, Outreach and Community Engagement Manager Richard Barajas (MIPA’06), and students Woojeong Shin (DVMx’28) and Sidney Steiner (DVMx’28) recently attended the Bell Midwest Regional Veterinary Leadership Summit in Columbus, Ohio. The summit focused on how authentic leadership strengthens teams, supports well-being, and drives meaningful impact across the profession (see photo at top of newsletter).
- Kavi Mehta (’06; Dept. of Comparative Biosciences) has several recent achievements to celebrate. He published SLX4IP limits replication stress globally and at ALT telomeres in The EMBO Journal, received a UW Carbone Cancer Center Support Grant, and was the only representative from UW-Madison nominated as a Pew Scholar for Cancer Research.
- Lisa Arendt (’98 DVM’02 PhD’07; Dept. of Comparative Biosciences) was elected to serve a three-year term on the Biological Sciences Divisional Committee for Promotion, starting this July. Her election carries on a tradition of SVM team members serving on this critical committee.
- Please join me in welcoming Alyssa Bulthuis to UW Veterinary Care. She joined the hospital last month as a veterinary nurse assistant in the CS/OR.
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A new video story from UW-Madison about hands-on learning at UW Vet Med features Alex Powers (DVM’2017; Dept. of Medical Sciences), Instructional Specialist Bailey Donovan, and students Maggie Piel (DVMx’29) and Max Benstine (DVMx’29), among others. Watch it here.
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Supporting WisCARES with the Madison Mallards
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On Friday, June 5, at 6:05 p.m., the Madison Mallards will host a group fundraiser to support WisCARES. For each ticket purchased using this link, $8 will be donated to WisCARES. Come out and support the clinic while rooting on the Mallards during their annual “Bark in the Park” event.
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- Sam Bilko (Dept. of Medical Sciences) recently joined the “Larry Meiller Show” on Wisconsin Public Radio to discuss how to keep pets safe in the yard as we transition through spring into summer. Listen to the full interview here.
- Starr Cameron (MS’21; Dept. of Medical Sciences) recently spoke with the Mid-West Farm Report about the SVM’s clinical studies and commitment to translation research, which help improve both animal and human health. List to the interview here.
- Tony Goldberg (Dept. of Pathobiological Sciences) recently spoke with Milwaukee’s CBS58 about hantavirus. "We've known about hantaviruses for a long time,” he says. “They don't transmit very efficiently among people and we don't expect them to cause a major epidemic.”
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