Congratulations to WVMA student members Danielle Schuld and Marie Bucko for being elected to serve as Student American Veterinary Medical Association (SAVMA) officers during the 49th annual SAVMA Symposium held in Athens, Georgia, in March! Schuld was installed as acting secretary and Bucko was elected president-elect.
Schuld, from Portage, Wisconsin, just completed her third year at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine (UWSVM) and a two-year term on the WVMA Executive Board. She is looking forward to the opportunities this leadership position will provide.
“One of the many reasons I was attracted to veterinary medicine was the ability to serve and educate others,” Schuld says. “SAVMA gives me the opportunity to do this for my future colleagues, allows me to make new connections, and gives me the chance to see the intense variability and diversity the veterinary profession has to offer.”
Bucko, from Brodhead, Wisconsin, just completed her second year at the UWSVM. Prior to veterinary school, she worked at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Washington, D.C. Her focus at FDA included working on the Veterinary Feed Directive, the Food Safety Modernization Act and collaborating with USDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on combating antimicrobial resistance.
“It is such a privilege to work and study alongside the hundreds of veterinary students that are equally passionate, committed, and enthusiastic for our incredible profession,” Bucko says. “These next two years will be the position of a lifetime – to have the honor of representing these very same students to improve our academic life, advocating for them and our future careers as veterinarians!”
The SAVMA’s purpose is to introduce veterinary students to the concept of organized veterinary medicine; to promote, enhance and support professionalism and veterinary medical education; and to encourage the development and empowerment of students as leaders in the profession of veterinary medicine and the community as a whole.