A student in the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine was selected through a competitive national application process for a prestigious travel award to two international conferences in 2014.

Sarah Krones of Frederick County, Md., a second-year dual degree student in the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Master of Public Health programs, will represent both the veterinary college and the Student American Veterinary Medical Association at conferences in Turkey and Indonesia next year. SAVMA’s International Veterinary Exchange Committee selected the public and corporate veterinary medicine student for the honor.

In her role as delegate, Krones will participate in both the International Veterinary Students’ Association (IVSA) Symposium in Turkey in January 2014 and the IVSA Congress in Indonesia in July/August 2014. She will accompany SAVMA’s international exchange officers and will be among only 100 international veterinary students and only a handful of U.S. veterinary students at the events.

Krones explained that the opportunity to connect with peers who have received their veterinary training in other countries will help her better understand the similarities and differences in international approaches to veterinary medicine and help her work more effectively in a globalized society.

“Throughout my life, I have lived and traveled in many countries including Germany, Tanzania, and Israel, while working and serving a variety of different communities,” said Krones, who also has experience closer to home as a community organizer helping Baltimore City residents establish and maintain community gardens. “I highly value opportunities to make those connections and be a bridge between cultures as we develop our global understanding of each other and our needs.”

An active member of several student organizations, Krones is the vice president of the Integrative Veterinary Medicine Club, historian/secretary co-chair of Veterinary Students as One In Culture and Ethnicity, and coordinator of the Bob Duncan Memorial 5K. After graduation, she says she hopes to practice large animal medicine in a One Health setting with marginalized or underserved populations.

Written by Michael Sutphin.
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