Winn Feline Foundation
Vicki Thayer, DVM, DABVP (Feline) Executive Director
888-963-6946, extension 702
Media Info
Steve Dale, CABC
Media Contact and Winn Board Member
773-895-8696
Media Info
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wyckoff, NJ, September 8, 2015: Ms. Emily Pearce is the Winn Feline Foundation and American Veterinary Medical Foundation (AVMF) joint annual Student Scholarship recipient for 2015. The Winn Board of Directors at their annual meeting in Toronto on July 1 selected Ms. Pearce, a 3rd year DVM student from Mississippi State University, for the $2500 scholarship.
Graduating with distinction from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 2012, Emily earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Biotechnology with a minor in Chemistry. As well as being an outstanding scholar, Emily is an accomplished athlete. She holds four Track and Field school records at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, was ranked 15th nationally in the Pole Vault and started on the WPI varsity Field Hockey team. Active in her community in Mississippi, Emily was accepted into the Summer Research Experience program where she completed her research project entitled “Use of Thermal Imaging for the Measurement of Body Temperature in Veterinary Species.”
Emily’s primary veterinary interest is small animal medicine with a special focus on felines. Living with her cat Derf ‘s anxiety issues, Emily says this experience has led her through lots of doors in feline medicine and she has grown to love the idiosyncratic nature of the species. One of her memorable experiences was traveling with two other students to attend the 2013 American Assn. of Feline Practitioner’s Annual Conference.
Ever the busy student leader, Emily is a past-president of the AAFP student chapter and led a significant expansion of the club’s membership while also organizing a successful fundraiser for the Cedarhill Animal Sanctuary. In addition to the fundraising, the student chapter provided basic health care for the sanctuary’s domestic cat colony. She also helped collaborate with the school’s Shelter Club and the Oktibbeha County Humane Society in establishing the first TNR (trap, neuter, release) program for the Starkville community. In case you wondered what she does in her spare time, she also volunteers for the Starkville Homeward Bound organization and serves as the Feline Foster Adoption Coordinator. Emily currently lives in Starkville with two rescue kitties, a hedgehog and a mischievous ferret named “Loki”.
Winn Feline Foundation and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation are pleased to collaborate in this effort to focus attention on the importance of feline health studies and the committed researchers who conduct these lifesaving investigations into the prevention and care of feline disease for “Every Cat, Every Day”.
About Winn Feline Foundation
Winn Feline Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 1968 that supports studies to improve cat health. Since 1968, Winn Feline Foundation has funded more than $5.2 million in health research for cats at more than 30 partner institutions world-wide. For further information, go to www.winnfelinefoundation.org.