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Shavonne Corbet recently won a Geraldine
R. Dodge Foundation Frontiers for Veterinary Medicine Fellowship.
This competitive, nationwide fellowship program awards summer
research grants to a select group of veterinary students based
on project proposals that seek innovative methods to advance
veterinary medicine and promote the humane treatment of animals.
This summer, Shavonne went to Puerto Rico to collect carapace
(shell) samples from wild green sea turtles and analyze the
samples for mercury, a ubiquitous environmental contaminant
and immunosuppressive agent. The goal of her project is to
correlate the amount of mercury accumulated by the turtles
with the presence of fibropapillomatosis, a debilitating disease
characterized by skin tumors that limit the turtle’s
ability to see, swim, eat or breathe.
Expected
graduation: May 2007
Degree Objective: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine
Other
degrees:
- B.S.A., Biological Sciences, University
of Georgia
University highlights, achievements and awards:
I have won the Berner Scholarship, a highly selective scholarship
awarded to two UGA veterinary students this year based on
our “potential for scholastic achievement, financial
need and demonstrated quality of leadership.” I also
have the William and Florence McFarlane Scholarship and the
Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Frontiers for Veterinary Medicine
Fellowship which allowed me to study wild green sea turtles
this summer in Puerto Rico.
I am also on the Honors and Awards Committee at the vet college.
I am the secretary of the Student Chapter of the American
Association of Zoo Veterinarians, treasurer of the Student
Association for Global Awareness, treasurer of the Student
Chapter of the American Holistic Veterinary Medicine Association,
and I am an active member of the Student Chapter of the American
Veterinary Medicine Association, which is the largest national
organization that promotes and supports the growth of the
entire veterinary profession.
Current employment:
I work part-time providing nursing care for patients at UGA’s
Veterinary Teaching Hospital in the Small Animal Intensive
Care Unit and giving college and hospital tours. I also volunteer
with the Wildlife Treatment Crew, performing triage and medical
care for sick and injured wildlife brought to the UGA Veterinary
Teaching Hospital.
High School: McIntosh High School
Hometown: Peachtree City, Georgia
Family ties:
My parents own their own business in Peachtree City, Georgia,
and my younger sister just graduated from UGA with a bachelor’s
degree in Digital Media; they have taught me the value of
hard work and always doing my best. My partner just earned
her Ph.D. in Environmental Health Science and is currently
a post-doctoral student in Ecology at UGA. She inspires me
to work towards goals that are personally meaningful rather
than financially rewarding. My furry children, Pancake and
Whiskey (the dogs) and Radclyffe and Macy Gray (the cats)
remind me everyday of what’s most important in life.
I choose to attend UGA because…
…UGA has been named the best veterinary school for the
money in the United States, making this school very appealing
to me as a financially independent student. Attending UGA
has become particularly advantageous to my career due to the
strength of our international veterinary medicine program,
thanks to Dr. Corrie Brown. Moreover, the progressive, close-knit
community of Athens has become very close to my heart over
the past eight years, and its proximity to Atlanta allows
me to remain close to my family.
My favorite things to do on campus are…
I love enjoying an ice cream cone from the Creamery and walking
over to the pond and garden between Ecology and Forestry.
I also enjoy the fabulous speakers and entertainers brought
to campus by the University Union, including Howard Zinn,
Jello Biafra, Bill Cosby, Indigo Girls and Dar Williams.
When I have free time, I like…
Depending on the weather, I like surfing, snowboarding, rollerblading,
skateboarding and a sport we call “Extreme Dog Walking”
which involves walking the dogs on the shoals at Ben Burton
Park and Watson’s Mill State Park and swimming from
rock to rock; this has turned out to be a much better workout
than walking on the path alongside the river.
The craziest thing I've done is…
Last summer, my friends convinced me to jump out of a perfectly
good airplane at Skydive Monroe. Although I did not conquer
my fear of falling like I had hoped, the view was spectacular,
and I have a very entertaining video for a souvenir.
My favorite place to study is…
If I really have to study, it is in my backyard with my dogs
because it’s peaceful, and we love any time we can spend
together. If I don’t really have to study, I like to
sit outside of Blue Sky Coffee because it’s the best
spot downtown for people-watching and meeting interesting
folks.
My favorite professor is…
As an undergraduate student, I loved Dr. Mark Compton’s
Avian Physiology class. His offbeat, enthusiastic teaching
style and his excellent laboratory exercises tremendously
helped me to learn difficult concepts in physiology and immunology.
I still use his lecture notes when studying physiology in
my veterinary school classes. Among the many wonderful vet
school professors I have had so far, I think that every student
who has been taught physiology and pharmacology by Dr. Scott
Brown would say that he is a truly brilliant individual and
a very gifted professor. I think we all consider ourselves
lucky to have been taught by him.
If money was not a consideration, I would love to…
…buy a large tract of land and open a wildlife rehabilitation
center and educational facility focused on teaching children
and adults about the fascinating world of biology and the
importance of conserving natural resources.
After graduation, I plan to…
…apply for a small animal veterinary internship and
will probably pursue an exotic/zoo animal medicine residency
after that. My ultimate career goals at this point are to
work internationally on problems in conservation medicine
and to teach at a veterinary school, although I would still
like to practice small animal medicine in some capacity.
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