Scholarships fund PA students at PA’s only vet school for training to benefit PA agriculture
[September 15, 2016; Philadelphia, PA] –Three first-year students from Pennsylvania have received Penn Vet’s Commonwealth One Health Scholarship, which provides a full tuition subsidy for four years at Penn Vet.
The scholarship, valued at $50,000 a year, recognizes the students’ potential to Penn Vet, to the veterinary profession, and to Pennsylvania agriculture.
Established in 2015, the scholarship is awarded to students from Pennsylvania who have demonstrated a genuine interest in animal production medicine and a desire to practice in Pennsylvania.
The Class of 2020 recipients are: Jordan Fairman of Dubois, PA; Enoch Kraycik of Bethlehem, PA; and Benjamin Luksic of Bernville, PA.
“Penn Vet recognizes the important role of veterinarians in production agriculture, especially here in Pennsylvania,” said Joan C. Hendricks, the Gilbert S. Kahn Dean of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
“The Commonwealth One Health Scholarship helps us attract the best and brightest to Penn Vet,” she continued. “The scholarship also helps us in our mission to train the next generation of large animal veterinarians, allowing them to follow their dreams of serving farmers without concerns about educational debt.”
About the Scholarship Recipients
Jordan Fairman, 22, received her undergraduate degree in Animal Science from Penn State University in 2016. She is interested in food animal medicine and research in reproductive biology. Fairman grew up on a Holstein dairy farm and participated in 4-H for 10 years, with cows, swine, and sheep. “I am specifically interested in dairy reproduction. Growing up on a farm has exposed me to various assisted-reproductive technologies such as embryo transfer and in-vitro fertilization,” Fairman said. “I really enjoy learning about these new techniques and how they can help improve the reproduction rates on dairy farms.”
Enoch Kraycik, 32, received his BS in Biology from Delaware Valley College in 2013, and intends to pursue a career in livestock medicine, specifically dairy and swine. He is interested in dairy mastitis as well as research on boar semen filtration by sex. Kraycik has been working at Penn Vet’s Swine Center for the past year.
“No other work is as fulfilling to me on so many levels as maintaining the health and wellness of animals,” Kraycik said.
Benjamin Luksic, 22, received his BS in Animal Science from Penn State University in 2016, and has worked as a farmhand. Dairy, poultry, and small ruminants are his primary interests. His research interests include ruminant nutrition and milk quality.
“Upon graduation from veterinary school, I look forward to working in a fast-paced private practice in Pennsylvania, with an emphasis on ruminants,” Luksic said. “One day I hope to invest in an ambulatory practice of my own.”