Conference Keynote Speaker to Encourage Action by Offering Practical Tips on Diversity and Inclusion

August 7, 2020

A woman smiles while holding a dog in a sunny outdoor setting near a body of water.

Dr. Kemba Marshall will encourage participants to talk a little less and act a little more during the 2020 Purdue Veterinary Conference Diversity Keynote presentation to be held Thursday, September 24. During a time when diversity and inclusion are top of mind for us as a Nation, as veterinary professionals, and as individuals, Dr. Marshall’s session will offer practical tips to assess and address gaps in diversity and inclusion. While people likely have been through multiple training sessions on the topics of diversity and inclusion, such programs do not always offer steps to begin or improve diversity in our professional lives. This session will focus on providing participants with practical steps on how to get started.

Dr. Marshall serves as the director of veterinary services for Land O’Lakes, Inc. In addition to providing on-farm veterinary support and veterinary technical support for the company’s Purina customer service and sales team representatives, Dr. Marshall also is involved with new product development.

Dr. Marshall received her bachelor’s degree in biology from Howard University and her DVM degree from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. She then went on to complete an avian/exotic animal residency at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Marshall is a diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (Avian) and has worked in private veterinary practice, university laboratory animal practice, and corporate retail veterinary practice.

The virtual Purdue Veterinary Conference September 22-25 will offer three days of high quality tracks covering equine, exotics, industry innovations, one health and emergency preparedness, practice management and communication, ruminant, small animal, swine, and topics of interest for veterinary nurses. Attendees can earn up to 24 hours of continuing education, and will have access to a virtual exhibit hall.

This year’s conference would not be possible without the generosity of these sponsors: IDEXX, Banfield Pet Hospital, the Indiana Board of Animal Health/Indiana State Department of Health, Nutrena, Purina, Zoetis, Elanco, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, and Coyne Veterinary Services.

Click here to view the schedule and learn more about the conference. Click here to register.

Writer(s): Andrea Brown and Kevin Doerr | pvmnews@purdue.edu

Recent Stories

“Paws Up” for Jennifer Danaher – brought to you by the PVM Wellness Committee

This week we express our gratitude to Jennifer Danaher, who is department secretary for Veterinary Clinical Sciences.

‘Purdue Pursuits’: A PVM angle on Purdue’s teaching and learning reading groups

Crafting meaningful and engaging course experiences has been at the top of Dielson Vieira’s mind ever since he joined the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s faculty in 2024. As a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Vieira is already adept at applying innovative teaching practices to classroom environments, but that doesn’t stop him from seeking out new ideas, approaches and perspectives — insights he gains through outlets like Purdue’s teaching and learning reading groups.

Top tier biology journal publishes PVM study that unlocks secrets of a drug-resistant fungal pathogen, which causes serious infections in humans

Though the name “Candida auris” is far from a household term, public health experts know it well because the multi-drug-resistant fungal pathogen, which causes serious human infections, has been classified as an urgent threat by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Antibiotic Threats Report (2019). Dr. Shankar Thangamani, Associate Professor of Microbiology and University Faculty Scholar in the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Comparative Pathobiology, is researching C. auris, aided by a 2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). New research findings, just published in Nature Microbiology, show how C. auris adapts and evades the immune system.

In Print: ‘Translational Research Methods for Tauopathies’

A just-published 300-page volume edited by Jessica Fortin, Purdue assistant professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Basic Medical Sciences, provides a significant new resource for researchers studying a group of neurodegenerative diseases known as tauopathies. “Translational Research Methods for Tauopathies” provides detailed protocols intentionally selected to serve as a basis for research laboratories seeking to further treatments for such debilitating neurodegenerative diseases as Alzheimer’s and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

It’s Almost Here!

Though the annual Purdue Veterinary Conference is almost upon us, there’s still time to register and take advantage of this time-honored College of Veterinary Medicine fall tradition that combines excellent continuing education with fun opportunities for reconnecting with colleagues and classmates, networking, and learning about the latest veterinary trends and products. The 2026 Purdue Veterinary Conference takes place September 23–26 on the Purdue University campus. The annual event has something for everyone, from veterinarians to veterinary technicians, faculty, staff and students.