Winner’s Circle Scholarship Program helps alleviate cost of veterinary education

Thirty-four veterinary students pursuing a career in equine medicine have received financial support through the Winner’s Circle Scholarship Program, co-sponsored by the American Association of Equine Practitioners Foundation, Platinum Performance and The Race for Education.

The Winner’s Circle scholarships are intended to help ease the financial burden of a veterinary education by providing fourth-year students at each of the AAEP’s 36 student chapters in North America with scholarships ranging from $1,500 to $5,000, depending on the needs of the individual student. Students are nominated from each chapter and selected for scholarships based on their leadership roles and dedication to a future in equine health care. 

“The financial realities of a veterinary education can impede a career in equine medicine,” said AAEP Foundation Chairman Wayne McIlwraith, BVSc, Ph.D. “The Winner’s Circle Scholarship Program is an important source of assistance to some of the best and brightest students as they prepare to embark upon their equine veterinary careers.”

“These bright young students will be on the forefront of the next generation of equine healthcare,” said Platinum Performance President Mark Herthel. “We are proud to support the future of veterinary medicine.”

In addition to the $1,500 guaranteed scholarship, 22 Winner’s Circle scholarship recipients as well as 24 additional applicants were eligible for an additional $4,000 in scholarship funds from a federal matching grant that the Race for Education received from the Assets for Independence program administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families.

Since its establishment in 2008, the Winner’s Circle Scholarship Program has provided $798,500 to 194 veterinary students bound for careers in equine medicine.

Congratulations to the following 2013 recipients:

Sara Alfano, University of Pennsylvania
Amy Ayers, University of Saskatchewan
Rosemary Bayless, Kansas State University
Marilyn Boyd, University of Tennessee
Kaitrin Branning, North Carolina State University
Lynn Brockway, University of Missouri
Julia Brooks, University of Illinois
Jennifer Drew, Oregon State University
Carli Grimbleby, Western University of Health Sciences
Kathleen Hall, Washington State University
Jacob Jensen, Purdue University
Kathryn Livesey, University of Wisconsin
Tessa Lumley, Tufts University
Elise Madara, Louisiana State University
Caitlin Manring, Ohio State University
Marianne Marshall, Colorado State University
Kelly McGowan, University of Florida
Danielle Miller-Boster, Mississippi State University
Lisa Millican, University of Prince Edward Island
Richelle Neundorf, University of Guelph 
Leah Northfield, University of Montreal
Joseph Pluhar, Texas A&M University
Lauren Ray, Tuskegee University
Elizabeth Reidy, Auburn University
Sarah Schmoke, Ross University
Audrey Seling, St. George’s University
Sara Lynn Specht, University of California-Davis
Eiry Spence, University of Calgary
Daniel Thomsen, Iowa State University
Riley Traywick, Virginia Tech
Aimee Vaughn, University of Georgia
Kami Vickerman, University of Minnesota
Brooke Wilson-Zaja, Cornell University
Whitney Zoll, Michigan State University

For additional information about The Race for Education, visit www.raceforeducation.org or call (859) 252-8648. For more information about Platinum Performance, visitwww.platinumperformance.com. 

The AAEP Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, was created in 1994 to serve as the charitable arm of the AAEP to improve the welfare of the horse. Additional information about the Foundation is available at www.aaepfoundation.org.

###