Accidental Decisions: Reflections on Moving Forward

作者:Lowrie Patricia M*
来源:Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, 2011, 38(3): 228-234.
DOI:10.3138/jvme.38.3.228

摘要

The Recognition Lecture is an annual honor awarded by the Association of American Veterinary Colleges (AAVMC) to an individual whose leadership and vision have made significant contributions to academic veterinary medicine and the veterinary profession. In 2010 this prestigious honor was bestowed upon Ms. Patricia Lowrie who has been, and continues to be, a champion of inclusion in the veterinary profession. She has spent much of her illustrious career addressing inequities in the veterinary profession, advocating for social justice, questioning inequality, and addressing the disproportionate representation of women in various fields of academia and senior-level academic positions. Ms. Lowrie is an influential leader who has contributed her energy, talents, passion, and dedication to advancing our understanding of the importance of diversity among the staff, faculty, and student bodies of veterinary colleges. She is the persistent voice that reminds us that our profession cannot reach pre-eminence until it reflects the makeup of our society and embraces the differences among us. Ms. Lowrie is a native of Washington, DC, where she grew up in a family that valued education and taught her that no dream was impossible and not to accept society's limitations for women, especially women of color. She received the BS and MS degrees in zoology from Harvard University and acquired additional training in organizational management from the University of California at Davis as well as training in community leadership from the Lansing Michigan Community College. Throughout her distinguished career she has held many important research and administrative positions. She started her career as a research assistant in electron microscopy in the Department of Animal Sciences and Dairy Sciences at Auburn University, and she later became a research assistant in the Department of Pathology at the California Primate Research Center, University of California at Davis and a specialist in electron microscopy at Michigan State University. Ms. Lowrie's love of the veterinary profession and veterinary medical education caused her to turn her attention to the lack of inclusiveness in the veterinary profession. This began a lifelong effort to encourage and support students of color in their quest to become members of the veterinary profession. This new path began when she was appointed the Affirmative Action Officer for the College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, and later Assistant to the Dean for Admissions and Affirmative Action. In 1993, she expanded her horizon and assumed the role of Senior Academic Specialist and Director of the Women's Research Center at Michigan State. Throughout her career Ms. Lowrie has been a mentor, colleague, friend, and cheerleader for countless individuals both within and outside of veterinary medicine. She has received many honors and awards for her efforts, including the Outstanding Contribution to Minority Medical Education Award presented by the National Association of Minority Educators, the Michigan State University All University Excellence in Diversity Award, the AAVMC Iverson Bell Award, and appointment as Senior Fellow in the Office of Diversity Equity and Global Initiatives by the American Association of Colleges and Universities. In addition, Ms. Lowrie has served on numerous local, state, and national committees relating to the recruitment, retention, and development of women and underrepresented individuals in higher education. Ms.
Lowrie has devoted countless hours to the AAVMC, where she helped desin and implement recruitment strategies for underrepresented students in veterinary medicine. For many years, she provided visionary leadership to the AAVMC Multicultural Affairs Committee, At Michigan State University, she created one of the most successful and longest running programs in the country for the recruitment of underrepresented students to veterinary medicine, The Vetward Bound Program, which has received federal funding for nearly 30 years. She has also received funding from the National Institutes of Health and the US Department of Agriculture for summer research programs for underrepresented high school students to allow them to gain research experience by working alongside noted veterinary scientists. A fact not well known and not fully appreciated in the veterinary profession is that in addition to helping students pursue their dreams of becoming veterinarians, Ms. Lowrie has assisted many veterinarians, especially graduates of Tuskegee University, in pursuing graduate and residency training at Michigan State University. Many of these individuals now hold key leadership positions in academia, government, and the private sector. On their behalf, I take the liberty to say thank you for being there when they needed you. In her lecture to attendees of the AAVMC Annual Meeting, which is included here, she reflected on the influence of mentors who impacted her life, many of whom were giants in the field of veterinary medical education. She recounts how they influenced her decisions and her career in so many ways and how they helped her develop the self-determination that was needed in order to never give up on fighting for the cause.

  • 出版日期2011

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