March 2026

As March arrives, I want to take a moment to recognize the tremendous amount of work happening across the UW School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM). Many of you are putting in significant effort to bring our innovative new OnWard curriculum to life — building as you teach, and all while balancing new material with our legacy courses. That’s no easy task. And it’s not just faculty carrying the load; this curriculum revision touches so many members of the UW Vet Med community. I see your hard work, and I deeply appreciate it.

Speaking with house officers and students during last month's Dean's Get Together.

On a related note, I’ve asked Kristi Thorson (MA’97) to lead a taskforce on instructional workload to further explore what resources and personnel are needed to ensure the success of OnWard. Members of the taskforce include our department chairs, associate deans from the Office of Academic Affairs, and the school's chief financial officer. We will share additional information about the taskforce’s work in the coming months.

I am incredibly proud of how our community has persevered over the past 12 months. An ever-changing federal funding landscape presented myriad challenges to our school and university, but through innovative thinking and close collaboration with campus partners, the SVM remains in a strong position. More changes are on the horizon: The university will soon begin a search for a new chancellor, and recruitment for UW-Madison’s next provost continues. In the meantime, I look forward to working with Eric Wilcots when he assumes the role of interim chancellor in May. He is an incredible scientist, advocate, and leader, and I’m thrilled to have his guidance and support.

There will also be a leadership transition in the Dept. of Pathobiologial Sciences. Kristen Bernard (MS’92 PhD’95) will retire on April 10. She served as chair of the department for five years and has been a member of the SVM faculty since 2009. Kristen is an amazing and highly accomplished person. She is a veterinarian, a scientist, a mentor, and a teacher. I’ve enjoyed getting to know her since I arrived in Madison, and I’ve always admired how deeply she cares about the people who make up this community. Thank you, Kristen, for your dedication and leadership. I hope your retirement is full of bike rides and art!

Until next time…

On, Wisconsin!

Jon

News from the Dept. of Pathobiological Sciences

It is my pleasure to announce the appointment of Suzana Salcedo as the next chair of the Dept. of Pathobiological Sciences. She will succeed Kristen Bernard (MS’92 PhD’95), who will retire on April 10.

Salcedo has been an SVM faculty member since 2024 after a two-decade career journey that took her to Portugal, the UK, and France. Suzana is a brilliant scientist, academician, educator, and leader who is keenly focused on supporting and elevating our mission and people. I look forward to working closely with her as we continue to create the future of veterinary medicine right here at UW-Madison.

— Jon

SVM news briefs

A team of researchers led by Johanna Elfenbein (Dept. of Pathobiological Sciences) recently had YeiE regulates YeiH to implement sulfite stress resistance in Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium published in the Journal of Bacteriology. The paper describes how Salmonella is resistant to sulfites.
Two SVM students recently received national recognition for their leadership potential and commitment to advancing the profession. Maria Rivera (DVMx'28) was selected for the Chewy Veterinary Leaders Program, and Abbey Williams (PhD’24, DVMx'28) was named a 2026 Merck Animal Health Diversity Leadership Scholarship recipient. Congratulations!
Gillian McLellan (Tim and Nancy Speaker Chair in Canine Health, Dept. of Surgical Sciences) was a featured speaker at Glaucoma Fast Track 2025 in Atlanta. Watch her whole presentation here.
The SVM, alongside the Schools of Nursing, Pharmacy, and Law, has been awarded a grant through the Wisconsin Exchange initiative. The funding will support a series of events that bring together students from multiple professional schools with different assumptions and forms of training to practice navigating ethical disagreements. The events will take place during the fall 2026 semester, with additional details to come.
Laura Solano (Dept. of Medical Sciences) recently led a session about early detection and proactive management of lameness in dairy cows at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College in Green Bay. Well done!
Chelsea Holschbach (DVM’14 MS’19, Dept. of Medical Sciences) recently participated in a National Dairy Shrine panel where she discussed avoiding burnout in the demanding 24/7 dairy industry, work-life balance, and fostering supportive work environments.
Thanks to the Dept. of Comparative Biosciences for sharing an impressive list of accomplishments:
McLean Gunderson (’97), Karen Hershberger-Braker (DVM’10), and Jessica Rippe (DVM’18) were selected to present a 60-minute interactive session at OPID’s Spring Conference (April 23-24, 2026).
Samantha Weaver (’14 PhD’18) recently completed the Madison Teaching and Learning Excellence Fellowship.
Tamryn Jordan of the Stietz lab and Allison Rundquist of the Vezina lab were named scholars in the KUH Generator TL1 training program. Congratulations!
Julia Tlapa and Bayli Morton (both of the Stietz lab) were selected as scholars on the T32 Environmental Health Biotechnology Training Grant. Well done!
Please join me in welcoming the following new staff members to UWVC:
Shelby Frey joined the emergency service as a veterinary assistant.
Chris Leroy joined the intermediate care ward as a veterinary technician.
Koushi Taka joined anesthesia as a veterinary nurse.

Now accepting submissions for Corpus Collosum

UW-Madison’s Ebling Library is now accepting submissions for the spring 2026 issue of its online arts journal, Corpus Callosum. The journal seeks original works of visual and written art from those affiliated with the UW-Madison health sciences community. Submissions can be submitted through March 11.

Learn more

Rural veterinary loan program update

The state Legislature last month approved a plan that could provide game-changing financial assistance for some Wisconsin veterinary medical students and recent graduates. The proposal offers up to $100,000 in student loan repayments for veterinarians employed in designated rural counties, helping tackle provider shortages while providing students significant financial assistance. UW Vet Med leaders worked with campus partners to provide testimony in support of the legislation.

Under the plan, fourth-year DVM students and veterinarians who have graduated in the past seven years (from the UW School of Veterinary Medicine or other accredited schools) would be eligible for the repayments, so long as they meet the following criteria:

Be employed in (or will be employed in) designated rural counties for at least a year.
Spend at least 50% of their time caring for farm animals.

In exchange, the state would provide $25,000 in loan repayments annually for up to four years.

The proposal has been approved by the Legislature and now heads to Gov. Tony Evers for his consideration. However, even if he signs the bill into law, a key hurdle remains: The bill does not currently contain funding for the loan repayment program.

One of the plan’s lead authors, Rep. Joel Kitchens, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel he expects funding for the program to be included in the next state budget. Lawmakers will take up that spending plan in summer 2027.

We will continue to provide updates on this important issue as well as other related topics as they arise.

Continuous improvement update

Above: Tammi Walsh (left), Jennifer Fitzsimmons (middle), and Shelby Williams (right)

UW Veterinary Care (UWVC) has officially launched its Continuous Improvement (CI) Mentorship Program, an initiative dedicated to optimizing hospital workflows while investing in the professional growth of our staff.

The program develops internal team members into Lean Coaches — facilitators trained to identify the root causes of daily frustrations for teams across the hospital and design their own sustainable solutions.

Following a rigorous process, the selection committee is proud to have selected its first cohort: Tammi Walsh, small animal veterinary nurse supervisor, and Shelby Williams, pharmacy manager. Over the next year, Walsh and Williams will dedicate 10 hours per month to the program, using the time to develop their coaching skills and provide CI support to teams across the hospital.

Please join us in congratulating our first cohort as we work together to improve UWVC workflows and deliver sustainable results for our patients, clients, students, and teams.

Media mentions

Sam Bilko (Dept. of Medical Sciences) gave tips to NBC15 about keeping pets safe and healthy during dog park visits and other outdoor activities. “When you go to the dog park, you want to always make sure you have your dog in eye line,” Bilko says.
Keith Poulsen (’00 DVM’04 PhD’12; Dept. of Medical Sciences; Director, Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory) spoke to AVMA News about a recent H5N1 “spillover event” that resulted in the disease being detected in a Wisconsin dairy herd. A spillover event occurs when the virus is transmitted by wildlife to dairy cows.
Freya Mowat (Dept. of Surgical Sciences) recently spoke with The New York Times about canine preferences when watching TV. “Dogs like to watch dogs, just like humans like to watch humans,” Mowat explains.
Douglas DeBoer (Dept. of Medical Sciences) spoke with The Farmer's Dog Digest about best practices for keeping your dog's skin healthy. "Diet and grooming" are the keys to healthy skin for your beloved canine, he says.
Amy Nichelason (Dept. of Medical Sciences) spoke with Wirecutter from The New York Times about when it’s appropriate to put clothes on your dog. “In general, I don’t think indoor dog clothes serve much of a practical purpose most of the time, but they’re totally fine as long as the dog is comfortable and doesn’t mind wearing them,” she says.