(May 28, 2009 Stillwater, OK) – The Oklahoma State University (OSU) Center for Veterinary Health Sciences recently held the first Advisory Board meeting for the National Center for Veterinary Parasitology (NCVP). The brain child of Susan Little, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ECVP and Krull-Ewing Endowed Chair in Veterinary Parasitology, the center is the only one of its kind in the United States.

The Advisory Board met to prioritize needs to get the NCVP up and running, to develop the student training program, identify the research focus and to determine the service focus and how the NCVP will address unmet diagnostic needs. Activities included a tour of the NCVP designated laboratory and office space, reviewing blueprints and renovation plans, and identifying additional facility needs. Advisory board members also toured the OSU Tick Lab and discussed plans to collaboratively teach an on-line course through the veterinary center.

Advisory Board members tour the tick rearing facility at Oklahoma State University.

Little will serve as the director of the NCVP. Members of the National Center Advisory Board are:

• Dr. Byron Blagburn, Auburn University
• Dr. Dwight Bowman, Cornell University
• Dr. Mike Dryden, Kansas State University
• Dr. Christian Epe, Novartis Animal Health
• Dr. Doug Hutchens, Bayer Animal Health
• Dr. Susan Little, Oklahoma State University
• Dean Michael Lorenz, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, Oklahoma State University
• Dr. Craig Reinemeyer, East Tennessee Clinical Research
• Dr. Anne Zajac, Virginia Tech

The mission of the National Center for Veterinary Parasitology is to further the many advances made in controlling parasitic diseases of animals through integrated programs of applied graduate and residency training, targeted current research initiatives, and a diagnostic and consulting service that serves the veterinary profession worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.ncvetp.org.

The Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health Sciences is one of 28 veterinary colleges in the United States and is fully accredited by the Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Association. The center’s Boren Veterinary Medial Teaching Hospital is open to the public and provides routine and specialized care for small and large animals. It also offers 24 hour emergency care and is certified by the American Animal Hospital Association. For more information, call (405) 744-7000.

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