VERO Faculty Awarded for Research, Teaching

Copy by Jennifer Gaunt, 979-862-.4216, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu  

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Three faculty members from the Texas A&M Veterinary Education, Research & Outreach program were recognized for their research and teaching excellence at the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences’ 2022 Honors & Awards Ceremony.

Drs. Paul Morley, Benjamin Newcomer and Matthew Scott received awards during the ceremony on March 25. Morley traveled from West Texas A&M University in Canyon to College Station to attend the event in person and accepted awards on Newcomer’s and Scott’s behalf.

“We are very proud of all that Drs. Morley, Newcomer, and Scott have accomplished for the VERO program and the recognition of this work at the CVMBS 2022 Honors & Awards Ceremony,” said Dr. Susan Eades, CVMBS associate dean for administration, Canyon campus. “These accomplishments exemplify the excellence in research and teaching performed by the great faculty in the VERO program. The teamwork and dedication demonstrated each day is powerful.”

Morley, VERO’s director of food animal research, received the Outstanding Research Leader Award and the Texas Veterinary Medical Association Research Award for his research achievements and exceptional record of extramural funding and publications.

“Dr. Morley is leading an outstanding research team working to address health issues important to the cattle industries of the Panhandle,” Eades said.

His research interests include antibiotic resistance, infectious diseases in food animals, and improving infection control and biosecurity to manage health risks that are important in veterinary medicine, agriculture, and public health. He has contributed to 40 publications since the beginning of 2019.

Morley earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Washington State University in 1989 and a Ph.D. from the University of Saskatchewan in 1995. He is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and joined the VERO program in 2019.

Newcomer, a CVMBS clinical associate professor, received the TVMA Teaching Award for his contributions as an educator.

As a dairy cattle veterinarian, he has a special interest in training students in the practical aspects of dairy science and dairy production management.

“Dr. Newcomer is not only an accomplished dairy cattle veterinarian but an excellent classroom and clinical teacher who impacts the education of veterinary and undergraduate students every day,” Eades said.

Newcomer received his DVM from the University of Florida in 2002 and practiced dairy production medicine for several years in California. He joined the Auburn College of Veterinary Medicine in 2008 as a clinical instructor while pursuing a Ph.D. in bovine infectious disease, and then joined the VERO program in 2020.

Scott, a CVMBS assistant professor of microbial ecology and infectious disease, received the Outstanding Young Faculty Research Award for his record of excellence in research, publications, and funding.

“Dr. Scott, in a very short time, has launched important projects evaluating risks of diseases affecting the cattle industry,” Eades said.

His work is focused on bovine respiratory disease (BRD), the leading disease complex in cattle, in an effort to develop pipelines for investigating and mitigating risk of BRD in high-risk settings, such as feedlots. He has received funding for multiple projects from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture.

Scott earned his DVM in 2018 and a Ph.D. in veterinary medical science – infectious diseases in 2021, both from Mississippi State University, before joining the VERO program in 2021.

Recruiting and retaining the highest quality faculty members is a key component of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic, $125 million One West comprehensive fundraising campaign. To date, the five-year campaign — which publicly launched Sept. 23 — has raised about $110 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of about 10,000 and offers 59 undergraduate degree programs, 39 master’s degrees and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

—WT—