Katherine Fafara CC'20
Animal Science major, Preveterinary Medicine/Research option
A member of the Rutgers Honors College, Katie was the top Animal Science major in her class of more than 100 students, excelling in multiple areas of academics (GPA 4.0), research, and service. She completed a G. H. Cook Scholars thesis entitled "The influence of colostrum intake on boar testicular development" in Dr. Carol Bagnell's lab.
Katie showed her leadership skills as a Rutgers First-Year Interest Group Seminar (FIGS) peer instructor and SEBS Student Ambassador and Tour Guide. For hands-on experience outside of the lab, she took Small Ruminant Practicum and participated in a study abroad program in Belize assisting a veterinarian caring for a variety of farm animal species. She also worked at the Bergen County Zoo, and as a veterinary technician at a small-animal hospital.
Named Alpha Zeta Student of the Year in 2018 and 2019, Katherine Fafara stood out as a role model for her fellow undergraduates while at Rutgers. Now, taking a gap year before veterinary school (she has been accepted by two schools so far), Katie works full-time at a small-animal hospital to improve her technical skills. She plans to become a mixed-practice vet so she can treat both companion animals and farm/livestock animals.
Dana Tsuchida CC'19
Animal Science major, Preveterinary Medicine/Research option
Even though Dana never owned a pet and had limited animal experience, she stepped out of her comfort zone at SEBS by joining Swine Practicum and Dairy Cattle Practicum in her first years. She continued to challenge herself by working on the farm through Animal Handling, Fitting & Exhibition sections for dairy cattle, goats, and poultry and Small Ruminant Practicum. Dana wrote, "Working with animals directly helped me better understand the material I learned in classes." Her study abroad experience in Belize and shadowing opportunities at Japanese hospitals provided Dana with an international perspective.
Dana worked in several Rutgers Animal Sciences laboratories and graduated as a George H. Cook Scholar for her honors thesis on the effects of nursing on gene expression in porcine small intestine (Bagnell lab). She was active in Society of Animal Science and served the Rutgers Veterinary Science Club as activities coordinator, treasurer, and president. As a SEBS Student Ambassador and Tour Guide, she welcomed prospective students and led campus tours. While teaching a First-Year Interest Group Seminar (FIGS) called "Exploring Veterinary Medicine", she shared her passion for animal care with her students. She also worked as a veterinary technician. Dana is currently a DVM student at Oregon State University, Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine.
Caroline Pawlowski CC'18
Animal Science major, Preveterinary Medicine/Research option
When Caroline gave a guest lecture to Careers in Animal Science students on "How to Make the Most of Your Undergraduate Time at RU", she spoke from her own experience. After learning to care for, and work with, pigs, sheep, and goats in farm practicum and Animal Handling and Fitting courses, she became an undergraduate teaching assistant for both Swine Practicum and Small Ruminant Practicum as well as Comparative Mammalian Anatomy and Animal Nutrition Lab. Her study-abroad experience (CELA Belize) provided an international perspective.
Caroline immersed herself in equine nutrition research with Dr. Carey Williams during her last two years at SEBS and graduated as a G. H. Cook Scholar after completing her honors thesis titled "Forage Recovery in Rotational vs. Continuous Pasture Systems after Intensive Horse Grazing". She was an active member of the Society of Animal Science and the Rutgers University Veterinary Science Club. With the Society of Animal Science, Caroline competed in the annual intercollegiate NESA competition. At NESA, she placed 4th in Team Quiz Bowl in 2017 and 1st as an Individual Research Presenter in 2018. Now a DVM candidate at the Kansas State University Veterinary Medical College, she credits her success in vet school to all the varied experiences.
Ankita Gupta CC'17
Animal Science major, Preveterinary Medicine/Research option
Ankita's academic journey was introduced to the SEBS community in the Spring 2017 issue of Explorations (see "Senior Snapshots"). Ankita began working in Dr. Nicholas Bello's lab while a first-year student and contributed to several projects related to the neural control of feeding and diet selection. She completed her George H. Cook Scholars thesis on taste sensitivity and preferences using the Engrailed 2 mouse, an animal model for Autism Spectrum Disorder.
In addition to excelling in academics and immersing herself in research, Ankita pursued opportunities to teach (TA, FIGS Peer Instructor); lead (SEBS Governing Council); develop professionally (Alpha Zeta, veterinary assistant, summer intern); and give back to the community.
In the Explorations article, Ankita was quoted as saying: "My mentors in this department showed me that I want to be a veterinarian but also pursue research as well." Now pursuing that goal as a DVM/PhD student in comparative biomedical sciences at the North Carolina State University's College of Veterinary Medicine, she was recently awarded a year-long fellowship to study diagnostic markers of osteoarthritis-associated pain in Alaskan sled dogs. After graduation, Ankita plans to do a small-animal rotating internship and a surgical residency before joining academia as a researcher and small animal surgeon.