Nathaniel White has been named Interim Director of the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in Leesburg. White, who assumed leadership responsibilities for the equine clinical and research center on April 1, succeeds G. Frederick Fregin, the center's founding director.

White joined the center as assistant director in 1985 and was appointed the Theodora Ayer Randolph> Professor of Equine Surgery in 1987. He is an internationally recognized expert in equine colic and musculoskeletal disorders.

"Dr. White brings to this job enormous achievement in scholarship, research and clinical care, strong familiarity with the center's heritage and aspirations, and a sincere desire to move the center forward," said Dr. Peter Eyre, dean of the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, which operates the EMC as one of three regional campuses.

"He envisions levels of clinical and research excellence that are very consistent with the goals that Virginia Tech has set for the decade ahead," he continued. "We are pleased about his leadership and excited about the future."

White earned his DVM degree from Cornell University in 1971 and completed an internship and residency program in equine surgery at the University of California at Davis. He also earned a MS degree in pathology from Kansas State University. He is board certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgery (ACVS) and he has served as Chairman of the Board of Regents of the ACVS and President of the ACVS Research and Education Foundation.

White currently serves as director of the ACVS Veterinary Symposium, a major international veterinary continuing education event. He is a past member of the national Board of Directors of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, and holds an adjunct faculty appointment at the University of Maryland at College Park.

White has published 139 publications in refereed academic journals and has authored several textbooks, including The Acute Equine Abdomen, Current Techniques in Equine Surgery and Lameness, and the Handbook of Equine Colic.

As assistant director for clinical services at the center, White has supervised all aspects of clinical care at the advanced equine referral center which treats about 2400 horses a year with a full-time staff of 60 employees.

He has also worked closely with the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center Council, an advisory organization that develops private support and provides operational guidance for the center that has become an integral part of the regional horse industry.

Dr. G. Frederick Fregin, the Jean Ellen duPont Shehan Professor and Director of the EMC, will officially retire on June 30. The three-month window between White's appointment and Fregin's retirement is designed to provide transitional support for the center's change in leadership, according to Eyre.

"Dr. Fregin has done a terrific job of establishing this center as a world class equine hospital," said White. "He has brought us to a level where we are poised for major progress, and I'm excited about this opportunity to play a role in that."

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