Students graduating veterinary school generally have an extraordinary debt load, with some students having borrowed several hundred thousand dollars. This is a crushing amount of debt for young veterinarians just starting out in their career and can take decades to pay off.
The Vermont Veterinary Medical Association Foundation’s mission is to provide scholarships for Vermonters attending veterinary school to help lower the debt load they face upon graduation. Applicants are chosen based on their overall burden of debt, academic achievement, desire to return to practice in Vermont, and their ability to overcome obstacles which confront them upon entering the veterinary profession. Funds are raised through contributions from veterinarians in Vermont and from the New England Veterinary Medical Association Conference.
Since its establishment in 2012, the VVMAF has contributed $68,000 to Vermonters attending veterinary school. The number of scholarship applicants in 2019 far exceeded the number of awards given, and it was a difficult task to make the decision this year among extraordinary candidates.
The VVMAF is pleased to announce the recipients of their 2019 scholarships:
Ryan Flannery of Calais is a junior at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. He was both a farmer and member of the US Coast Guard before deciding to attend veterinary school. He plans to join an ambulatory medical practice to take his skills to small Vermont farms, treating both large and companion animals.
Brittain Shorter of Colchester is a junior at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. He plans to return to Vermont to join a small/mixed animal practice working in both emergency and internal medicine as well as with wildlife.
Melissa Trayah of Colchester is a senior at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. She plans to become a radiologist and work in Vermont after going through a radiology residency. She has worked at multiple referral hospitals in the Burlington area.
Congratulations to these Vermont students!