We are very happy to announce the winners of its first annual Solutions for the Profession Competition. Three creative students were awarded cash prizes to help with educational expenses.
The competition offers veterinary students an opportunity to share an innovative solution to a problem facing the profession. Over one hundred entries were submitted from around the world. Veterinary student debt and mental health were the most common problems addressed.
VIN Foundation’s Board Chairman, Dr. Richard Headley, stated “This essay competition provides an opportunity for veterinary students to participate in helping to solve some of the pressing issues in our profession. It is invigorating to read so many good solutions to the issues we are facing. I am honored the VIN Foundation is able to shed light on how we can collaborate to positively impact the profession for future generations.”
Judges found it difficult to select only three winners from the entries. The VIN Foundation Solutions for the Profession Committee selected the top thirty entries in the first round of judging. These essays were assessed by experts in the topic areas, who passed the top seven to three well-known leaders in the veterinary profession. The final judges, after much discussion, selected the winners:
First place was awarded to Hanum Wensil-Strow for her thought-provoking essay on the veterinary student debt situation. Hanum is entering her fourth year has a student at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. She is interested in large animal medicine and wildlife conservation.
Second place went to Shannon Finn for her innovative approach to the mental health issues challenging colleagues in the veterinary profession. Shannon is entering her fourth and final year at the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph, Canada. She is hoping to go into rural food animal practice upon graduation, but also has interests in public health and regulatory medicine.
Alexandra Ripperger won third place for her inventive approach to gender inequality. Alexandra is entering her fourth year as a veterinary student at the University of Minnesota. She enjoys working with small animals, and small ruminants/camelids.
The VIN Foundation will announce the second annual competition later this year, stay tuned to find our more on the Solutions for the Profession Competition page.
The full press release was distributed by PR Newswire.
Please let us know if you have any questions, and as always your feedback is welcome.
VIN Foundation
The VIN Foundation was founded by members of the Veterinary Information Network (VIN) in 2005. VIN is an online community of veterinarians and veterinary students with over 100,000 members worldwide. The VIN Foundation’s charitable efforts are centered around the belief that a healthy veterinary profession is essential for healthy animal and human communities.
