(May 1, 2009 Stillwater, OK) – The Oklahoma State University (OSU) Center for Veterinary Health Sciences recently held its Annual Awards Ceremony. Among those honored was Brent Johnson, originally from Lawton, Okla.

Johnson received the Stratton Staff Award for his work as an analytical toxicologist at the veterinary center’s Oklahoma Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. Nominated by his peers, Johnson is known for his calm demeanor, intelligence, motivation and work ethic.

“He is always looking at ways to improve our laboratory whether it’s obtaining a new test kit or learning a different way to run a test,” says Sandra Morgan, DVM, and Johnson’s supervisor. “I can depend on him to do it right, which gives me complete confidence in the test results we submit to veterinarians, animal owners and often courts of law.”

Johnson has worked at OSU for 19 years and was surprised to receive the award.
“I had no idea,” he says. “I wasn’t even at the banquet. I was very surprised and honored to receive this award.”

As the lab manager of Toxicology, Johnson is responsible for running and maintaining the many different machines used to analyze tissue samples. Using chemical methods his laboratory is able to identify many toxins present.

The Stratton Staff Award was established upon the retirement of Dr. Louie Stratton in 1989. It was his wish to establish an award to honor outstanding staff members at the veterinary center for their dedicated service and many key contributions.

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, visit www.cvhs.okstate.edu or call (405) 744-7000.

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