In 1994, the UTCVM Distinguished Alumni Awards were created to recognize some of the outstanding graduates of the college. Nominees are UTCVM graduates who excel in at least one of the five areas of veterinary medicine: private practice, teaching, research, public service, or organized veterinary medicine. In addition, an award for First Decade Achievement is also given to a graduate of UTCVM with a DVM degree earned within the last ten years. The awards are presented at the graduation and hooding ceremony each spring.
2025 First Decade Achievement Award
Molly Brinkmann, DVM
Beauchamp Animal Hospital
Franklin, Tennessee
In 1994, the UTCVM Distinguished Alumni Awards were created to recognize some of the outstanding graduates of the college. Nominees are UTCVM graduates who excel in at least one of the five areas of veterinary medicine: private practice, teaching, research, public service, or organized veterinary medicine. In addition, an award for First Decade Achievement is also given to a graduate of UTCVM with a DVM degree earned within the last ten years. The awards are presented at the graduation and hooding ceremony each spring.
2025 UTCVM Distinguished Alumni Awards
Walter Clark, DVM, DABVP
Grassmere Animal Hospital
Nashville, Tennessee
Walter Clark, Distinguished Alumnus in Private Practice, is a class of 1983 graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. Since his graduation, he has earned certification as a Diplomate for the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners and has been recognized for exceptional service to the Tennessee Veterinary Medical Association (TVMA). Clark is a past president of the TVMA and has been cited several times in his career, first as the TVMA Young Veterinarian of the Year and later with the TVMA Distinguished Service Award. Most recently, he received the 2020 TVMA Lifetime Achievement Award. Clark also offers his expertise and time to support the College of Veterinary Medicine as a longtime member of the UTCVM Board of Advisors. When not seeing patients and clients at Grassmere Animal Hospital in Nashville, this alumnus gives his all to the University of Tennessee.
Morgan Mander, DVM
US Army’s Veterinary Corps
Clarksville, Tennessee
Morgan Mander, Distinguished Alumna in Non Private Practice, is a class of 2010 graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. She completed a bachelor’s degree in biology at Saint Leo University in Florida before coming to Tennessee for veterinary school and the dual DVM/MPH program. Rising through the ranks in the US Army, Mander has led veterinary services in multiple locations and has traveled the world for her professional commitments. She is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine (ACVPM) and serves on the ACVPM’s Membership and Outreach Committee. Her work in the organization recently was recognized with the 2024 Frank A. Todd President’s Award for meritorious service. She currently serves at the rank of lieutenant colonel and provides expertise in food safety and security and public health as a medical command congressional liaison.
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