Speaker Biographies

Dr. Rachel Allbaugh is originally from Waterloo, Iowa and received her DVM degree from Iowa State University in 2004 and is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists. She completed a veterinary ophthalmology residency at Kansas State University and was on faculty from 2008-2011. In 2011 Dr. Allbaugh returned to Iowa State University and is now an Associate Professor. Her areas of expertise include ophthalmic diseases of dogs, cats, horses, and other species as well as periocular, corneal and intraocular surgeries. Her research Interests include ocular pharmacology, blood-aqueous barrier breakdown and clinical applied research.
 
Dr. Grant Allison received his BS from Kansas State University in 1980 and his DVM from Iowa State University in 1984. In 1985 he joined the Walcott Veterinary Clinic and is currently a partner there. Dr. Allison also completed the Executive Veterinary program at the University of Illinois in 2009.
 
Dr. Lisa Becton received her DVM in 1994 from North Carolina State University and her MS in Food Safety from Michigan State University. Dr. Becton is a graduate of the Executive Veterinary Program in Swine Health Management and is Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine. Since 2008, Dr. Becton is the Director of Swine Health Information and Research with National Pork Board. 
 
Dr. Matt Brewer DVM, PhD, DACVM (Parasitology) is an assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary Pathology at Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine. He conducts diagnostic and research activities with an emphasis on the diagnosis and treatment of parasitic diseases.

Dr. Troy Brick
 
Dr. Don Broshar is a private consultant who spent over 45 years working with individuals and groups to improve performance. He spent 35 years working for ISU Extension and Outreach and 5+ years working for ISU Human Resources facilitating leadership development. He also spent 4 years working for Indian Hills Community College and 9 months for state government in Des Moines.
 
Dr. David N. Brown currently serves as the Behavioral Heath State Specialist for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.  In this position, he provides subject matter support and leadership to Extension efforts related to behavioral health, such as farm stress, stress management, and mental health literacy.
 
Dr. Maria Jose Clavijo is a research assistant professor at the ISU VDL and has broad experience in the area of bacterial diseases of swine, both in the research and clinical management areas. She completed a PhD characterizing the epidemiology of M. hyorhinis. At PIC, Dr. Clavijo has worked directly with producers challenged by Mhp, developing and implementing prevention and elimination strategies.
 
Dr. Katarzyna Dembek received her DVM from Warsaw University (Poland) in 2005.  She completed a one year equine internship at Lisadell Equine Hospital (Ireland).  She then moved to Saudi Arabia for 3 years where she worked in private equine practice as a general practitioner.  In 2012, Dr. Dembek completed a combined Equine Internal Medicine Residency and Master of Science training program in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at The Ohio State University. Subsequently, she achieved board-certification by the ACVIM. The same year Dr. Dembek began a PhD training program under the supervision of Dr. Toribio. She successfully defended her dissertation entitled: “Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysfunction in critically ill foals” in 2016. Dr. Dembek joined the Equine Medicine Service of the Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center at Iowa State University in 2016. 
 
Dr. Grant Dewell received his DVM from Colorado State University in 1993 and was in a primarily cow-calf practice in central South Dakota for 2 years.  Following practice, he completed a Master’s degree in Agriculture Economics at Colorado State University.  Dr. Dewell then joined the faculty at the University of Nebraska’s Great Plains Veterinary Education Center, in Clay Center, Nebraska for four years.  He then returned to Colorado State University to complete a Ph.D. in Epidemiology with a focus on pre-harvest food safety in feedlot cattle.  He is currently the Beef Cattle Extension Veterinarian at Iowa State University.  Dr. Dewell’s research interests are health management of feedlot cattle, animal welfare and economic considerations for beef production operations.
 
Dr. Braidee Foote is a third-year ophthalmology resident at Iowa State University. A graduate of University of California-Davis, Dr. Foote pursued small animal and large animal rotating internships and specialty ophthalmology internships before coming to the Midwest. Her interests include large animal ophthalmology, innovative ophthalmic surgical techniques, and surgical outcomes.
 
Dr. Heather Fowler is the Director of Producer and Public Health at the National Pork Board where she oversees public health and worker safety and health issues as they relate to swine production in the United States. She is board certified in preventive medicine with expertise in One Health application.
 
Dr. Nyomi Galow-Kersh is a 2005 graduate of ISU CVM and a one year large animal internship at ISU LVMC. She then worked with Oakridge Equine Hospital in Oklahoma for two years before returning to ISU. Dr. Galow-Kersh worked in the equine theriogenology department for ten years and is currently working at Iowa Equine.
 
Dr. Patrick Gorden graduated from ISU in 1993 and was in private practice in WI and AZ for 14 years. In 2007, he joined the faculty at ISU and currently teaches dairy production medicine with specialization in milk quality and clinical pharmacology.  He is the current vice president of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners.

Mr. Colin Grace is a licensed attorney and the Director of Legal and Strategic Initiatives at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa, Inc.  In addition to his duties as the ARL’s in-house counsel, Colin assists and advises law enforcement officials and prosecutors in investigating and prosecuting animal cruelty cases, lobbies the Iowa Legislature to strengthen Iowa’s companion animal cruelty laws, and educates different groups around the states on several animal welfare issues.
 
Dr. Amy Grice was an ambulatory equine practitioner in the Hudson Valley of New York for 25 years and served as the managing partner of the 13 doctor equine referral hospital in Rhinebeck, NY. At the end of 2014, she retired from clinical practice to concentrate on veterinary business consulting, and moved her residence to Virginia City, MT.  Dr. Grice completed her veterinary education at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine in 1990. She earned her MBA with a concentration in Ethical Leadership from Marist College School of Management in 2014.  Dr. Grice is a member of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, where she served on the Board of Directors from 2015-2018, and currently serves on several task forces. She is currently serving as a member of the AVMA Economic Strategy Committee.  Dr. Grice is a frequent speaker at educational seminars for veterinarians both nationally and regionally, as well as facilitating regional Decade One networking groups for veterinarians early in their careers. In addition, she collaborates with industry partners to bring business education to veterinarians and consults with a diverse range of veterinary businesses. Dr. Grice aids with transitions of ownership, strategic planning, financial projections, and other solutions for private practitioners.
 
Dr. Dan Grooms DVM, PhD, became the Dr. Stephen G. Juelsgaard Dean of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University on October 1, 2018. At Iowa State he oversees the College of Veterinary Medicine, its five academic departments, the Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center including the Hixson-Lied Small Animal Hospital and the Large Animal Hospital, and the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. Prior to coming to Iowa State, Dean Grooms was a professor, extension veterinarian, administrator and researcher at Michigan State University's College of Veterinary Medicine since 1997. He was named chair of Michigan State’s Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences in 2014. He has also worked as a staff veterinarian for the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center and as a clinical veterinary associate at a Ohio mixed animal veterinary practice. An expert in bovine infectious diseases, he has been an active researcher in his academic career, receiving multiple grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, higher education institutions and private companies. Dr. Grooms holds board certification from the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists with a specialty in veterinary virology. He is a former president of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners and has served on the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture's Committee on Animal Health.
 
Dr. Tom Hansen graduated from Iowa State University's College of Veterinary Medicine in 2011.  He practices at Veterinary Medical Center in Williamsburg, Iowa.  Dr. Hansen's main areas of practice focus are cow/calf medicine and surgery, with an emphasis on reproduction.  He is the current chair of the IVMA Bovine Committee. 
 
Dr. Heidi Hulon, a native of Alabama, graduated from Auburn University with both her Bachelor’s and DVM degrees.  Over the course of her 26 year career, she has been an associate, a practice owner, a shelter vet, a Dept. Chair for a Veterinary Technician program and an Industry Veterinarian (Hills and Elanco).  She still practices as a relief vet.  Dr. Hulon is a Past-President of the KYVMA.  Currently, Dr. Hulon works for Elanco Animal Health as a Beyond Product Veterinarian providing training in Technical and Non-Technical programs.  She is also devoted to the Power of Ten program.   She is a Certified Compassion Fatigue Professional, Human Animal Certified, Fear Free Level 3 Certified and Insights Discovery Certified Professional.
 
Dr. Anna Johnson is a Professor in the Department of Animal Science at Iowa State University. Dr. Johnson’s appointment consists of 50% research where she focuses on enrichment, 25% teaching undergraduates and graduate students and 25% extension where she works closely with state and national committees.
 
Dr. Jeff Kaisand graduated from Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1993 with a BS in Animal Science in 1989. He worked in a private mixed practice and then worked for a large swine company before starting with IDALS in 2013. He is currently the State Veterinarian for Iowa.
 
Ms. Sarah Kolb, BAS RVT VTS-CP achieved VTS status with the AVTCP in exotics in 2015 and obtained a bachelor’s degree in veterinary technology in 2018. She has worked in the Primary Care/Exotic Companion Animal Department at ISU Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center since 2006. Sarah is also a VSPN instructor and self-employed as a Parrot Behavior Consultant.
 
Ms. Tabitha Kucera CCBC, RVT, KPA-CTP is the owner of Chirrups and Chatter cat and dog behavior consulting and training. She is a certified cat behavior consultant, a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner, and a level 3 Fear Free and Low Stress Handling Certified Registered Veterinary Technician. She the co- chair of PPG’s Feline Committee. Board member of The Together Initiative for Ohio Community Cats and is the president of the Society of Veterinary Behavior technicians.
 
Dr. Michael R. Lappin graduated from Oklahoma State University and then completed an internship, internal medicine residency, and PhD program in Parasitology at the University of Georgia.  His principal areas of interest are prevention of infectious diseases, the upper respiratory disease complex, infectious causes of fever, infectious causes of diarrhea, and zoonoses of cats.  Dr. Lappin is the Kenneth W. Smith Professor in Small Animal Clinical Veterinary Medicine at Colorado State University and he helps direct the shelter medicine program.  He is the director of the “Center for Companion Animal Studies” and has received a number of awards including the Norden Distinguished Teaching Award, the European Society of Feline Medicine International Award 2008 for Outstanding Contribution to Feline Medicine, the Winn Feline Research Award in 2009, the ACVIM Robert W. Kirk Award for Professional Excellence in 2014, and the WSAVA Scientific Achievement Award in 2015.
 
Dr. Rodger Main is a Professor and Director of the Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (ISU VDL). ISU VDL’s team of 160 faculty and staff play an active role on the frontlines of US animal agriculture processing approximately 100,000 diagnostic case submissions and conducting more than 1.4 million diagnostic assays annually. Prior to coming to the ISU VDL in 2009, Dr. Main served as the Director of Production Systems for Murphy-Brown’s Western Operations (a division of Smithfield Foods) where he had worked since graduating veterinary school in 1996.
 
Mr. Mick McAuliffe has worked in animal training and behavior since 1987.  Before coming to the United States, Mick served as the Director of Animal Behavior and Training for the RSPCA Queensland, Australia, where he developed assessment, modification and training programs for multiple species.  Mick has applied his training skills to a variety of animals, from Sea World Australia’s large marine mammals to serving as head avian keeper and trainer for a collection of 130 native and exotic birds.  Mick has lectured on animal behavior across five continents, working extensively in Australia, Japan, China, England, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
 
Dr. Chelsea McGivney achieved her bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Air Force Academy and her DVM from Colorado State University.  She completed a small animal rotating internship in Maryland, has practiced in both Maryland and Colorado, and currently resides in Colorado doing relief work in the Denver area and working full-time as a Veterinary Communications Manager for Nestlé Purina.
 
Dr. Jen Mathis is residency trained under Dr. Heidi Lobprise, DAVDC. She is a contributor to the next edition of the 5-minute consult: Small Animal Dentistry. She practices in the Des Moines, Iowa area where she owns two general practices.  Prior to formal dentistry training, she became a certified veterinary medical acupuncturist and a certified veterinary pain practitioner with the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management (IVAPM). 
 
Dr. Suzanne Millman holds joint appointments in the VDPAM and BMS departments at ISU College of Veterinary Medicine. She is an applied ethologist, whose research and teaching interests focus on animal welfare assessment, low stress handling, animal cognition and behavioral responses of animals to states of pain and illness.
 
Dr. Michael Nagorske grew up on a grain and cattle farm in Southwestern Minnesota which continues to consist of a corn, soybeans and registered Angus seed-stock operation.  He attended the University of Minnesota where he received his DVM and BS in Veterinary Science.  He started working for Trans Ova Genetics at the beginning of his veterinary career and served a lead role on the Veterinary Services Team which was responsible for the animal health, surgeries and husbandry procedures for the cattle involved in the Elite Calf Program, Viagen Cloning Program, Genetic Advancement Center’s Heifer Program, and Recipient Cow Program.  As Director of SCCL’s Technical Veterinary Services team, Mike performs technical consulting on calf rearing and beef cow calf programs globally.  He also serves as Director of SCCL’s Research Program and is engaged in both academic and field studies throughout the world to uncover evidence-based solutions associated with colostrum management and calf development.
 
Dr. Debra Olbrich is a senior professional services veterinarian with Merck Animal Health and covers both Illinois and Iowa. Prior to her role at Merck, she obtained her master’s degree from Northern Illinois University which is where her interest in parasites first started. Her master’s thesis focused on parasitoid wasps that she collected at her family’s dairy farm. Following her studies at NIU, she obtained her veterinary medical degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Olbrich worked as a small animal veterinarian in a private practice located in Wilmette, Il prior to obtaining a role in industry. She holds an additional certification in Veterinary Medical Acupuncture.
 
Dr. Chris Rademacher is a Clinical Professor and ISU Swine Extension Veterinarian in the Veterinary Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine (VDPAM) department at the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine.  Dr. Rademacher is also Associate Director of the Iowa Pork Industry Center at Iowa State University.  Dr. Rademacher received his Bachelor of Science and Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Minnesota in 1998. Following graduation, he joined New Fashion Pork as Director of Health Services.  In 2009 he joined Murphy-Brown Western Operations (Smithfield Foods) as the Director of Production Improvement.  In December 2014 he accepted the position of Swine Extension Veterinarian at Iowa State University.  He has led programming efforts in Common Swine Industry Audit, VFD antibiotic regulations and most recently Foreign Animal Disease Producer Preparation for the Iowa Pork Industry Center as well as research on strategic antibiotic use, PEDV, PRRS and Senecavirus A.
 
Dr. Jim Roth is a Distinguished Professor in the CVM at ISU. He received his DVM (1975) and PhD (1981) degrees from ISU and is the Director of the Center for Food Security and Public Health. Dr. Roth’s area of research expertise is immunity to infectious diseases of food producing animals.
 
Dr. David Schmitt graduated from Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1973.  After one year of private practice in Roseville, Minnesota, Dr. Schmitt moved to Stuart, Iowa in 1974 and practiced veterinary medicine in a mixed animal practice there until 1999.  He began his duties in the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) as the Assistant State Veterinarian in 1999 and was appointed State Veterinarian in 2008.  Dr. Schmitt retired from IDALS January 2019.
 
Dr. Tim Smith is a staff veterinarian for APHIS, Veterinary Services (VS), Strategy and Policy, National Animal Disease Traceability and Veterinary Accreditation Center (NADTVAC). His current duties focus on training and outreach projects for VS, Strategy and Policy, including outreach and educational opportunities for Animal Disease Traceability and the National Veterinary Accreditation Program.

Mr. Joe Stafford has been the Director of Animal Control Services with the Animal Rescue League of Iowa since March 2019. In this role, Joe directs and manages the Animal Services program for the City of Des Moines, Trap Neuter Return, Community Outreach, and Animal Welfare Intervention programs.  Joe has 20 years of animal welfare experience and previously served as the Director of Animal Law Enforcement for HSPPR in Colorado.  In addition, he served 13 years in the US Air Force as a Law Enforcement Officer. 
 
Dr. Paul Sundberg is the Executive Director of the Swine Health Information Center.  He is responsible for facilitating the U.S. pork industry's preparedness for emerging diseases through fulfilling the discovery, research and communication objectives of the Center.  The mission of the Center is to protect and enhance the health of the US swine herd through coordinated global disease monitoring, targeted research investments that minimize the impact of future disease threats and analysis of swine health data. Previously, he served as the Senior Vice President of Science and Technology for the National Pork Board and as Assistant Vice President of Science and Technology for the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC).  Dr. Sundberg attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he earned his bachelor’s degree in biology.  He received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, master’s and doctorate in veterinary microbiology with a specialty in preventive medicine degrees at Iowa State University.  He is also board certified in the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine and is a past-president of the College.
 
Dr. Dane M. Tatarniuk is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Equine Surgery at the Lloyd Veterinary Medical Center, Iowa State University.  Dr. Tatarniuk is originally from Saskatchewan, Canada and received his DVM from the University of Saskatchewan in 2011. He continued his education with an internship at Littleton Equine Medical Center, in Littleton Colorado, followed by a residency in Equine Surgery & Lameness at the University of Minnesota. He joined the equine surgery department at Iowa State University in 2016. He has a research interest in musculoskeletal traumatology, orthopedics, and equine upper airway surgery.

Dr. Joseph Thomas grew up on a farrow to finish farm in Eastern Iowa. He received his BS, MS (Veterinary Microbiology) and DVM from ISU. Dr. Thomas served three years as a captain in the US Army's Veterinary CORPS. He previously was with AMVC and since 2020 has been at the ISU VDL to train as a diagnostician and earn his PhD in Veterinary Microbiology.
 
Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Dr. Austin Viall became an Iowa convert in 2014 upon joining Iowa State University as a clinical pathologist.  Dr. Viall is currently the director of the clinical pathology laboratory at ISU College of Veterinary Medicine.  He has a special interest in oncology research and diagnostics.
 
Dr. Patrick Webb is the director of swine health programs at the National Pork Board, where he joined in 2005.  He is responsible for the Pork Checkoff’s efforts in animal identification, pre-harvest traceability and foreign animal disease planning, preparedness and response. Dr. Webb received his bachelor’s degree in animal science and veterinary degree from Iowa State University. Throughout his career, Dr. Webb has worked extensively on emergency preparedness and planning at the local, state and federal levels. He has developed and delivered numerous educational programs directed at training producers, veterinarians, county emergency managers and first responders on how to react to foreign animal disease disasters.
 
Dr. Randy Wheeler is a native Iowan who graduated from ISU College of Veterinary Medicine in 1977. Dr. Wheeler practiced full-time for 30 years and was a practice owner for 27 of those years in a Mixed Animal setting in Winterset, Iowa. After 7 years as the Assistant State Veterinarian with the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Randy joined the staff of the Iowa Veterinary Medical Association (IVMA) and has been the IVMA Executive Director since 2014. Randy has been in organized veterinary medicine for 43 years and is a Life Member of the IVMA. He has served with the IVMA as a Committee Chair, an Executive Board member, a Past President of the IVMA, the IVMA Foundation and the ISU Veterinary Medical Alumni Association. Some honors Dr. Wheeler has been privileged with include IVMA Veterinarian of the Year and ISU Veterinary Medical Alumni Outstanding Service Award. Randy serves as an officer on the national Veterinary Medical Association Executives organization.

Mr. Scott Wilson has been involved in animal welfare in various forms for 29 years.  Throughout this time, Scott has led numerous animal welfare investigations, coordinated animal responses in numerous natural disasters, worked in researching and drafting animal welfare legislation in numerous jurisdictions, and trained law enforcement, shelter staff, and other professionals around the country on a variety of animal welfare topics.
 
Ms. Lauren Wright is a licensed mental health counselor working as Clinical Therapist and Vet Med Counseling Service Coordinator for Iowa State University Student Counseling Services. She provides counseling, resources and wellness support for students at the College of Veterinary Medicine 4 days a week. Lauren seeks to provide students compassionate support and guidance so they may work through difficult transitions, maintain academic success and achieve general life balance and wellbeing.
 
Dr. Bianca Zaffarano has a diverse background in Veterinary Medicine.  For the last 25 year she has focused on exotic companion animal medicine and has been a faculty member at ISU for 10 years. Prior to joining ISU, she owned her own clinic in Lexington, KY, providing high quality veterinary care to canine, feline and exotic companion animals/wildlife in the Lexington area. She is a board member of the Association of Avian Veterinarians and the American Heartworm Society, and just finished her term as the Avian Chair for the Veterinary Meeting and Expo (VMX) for the last 5 years.  She is a repeatedly invited to speak and teach at local, national and international venues.