UGA VetMed, ABAC join forces to build rural Georgia’s veterinary workforce

UGA VetMed, ABAC join forces to build rural Georgia’s veterinary workforce Incentive program will pair undergrads with large animal faculty mentors Maylee Barnes has long dreamed of being a veterinarian.

She began pursuing that dream at the age of 13 when her family relocated to an ailing grandfather’s farm to help manage his herd of beef cattle.

Now a rising junior at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, she plans to return home after vet school to provide needed services to her rural community.

The University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine and ABAC are investing in her success through the Georgia Rural Practice Veterinary Incentive Program.

2, the colleges signed a memorandum of understanding formalizing this collaborative effort to address veterinary workforce shortages in rural Georgia.

The veterinary incentive program is designed to support ABAC undergraduates who are pursuing mixed or food animal veterinary careers and plan to practice in underserved communities across the state.

Participants receive personalized advising and mentoring from an ABAC animal science faculty advisor and a UGA veterinary medicine faculty mentor who specializes in food animal care.

Students are expected to complete the required coursework for ABAC’s animal science track, the prerequisites for admission to UGA VetMed, and specific hands-on experiences designed to prepare them for careers in rural veterinary medicine.

“This is going to make me a well-rounded applicant for vet school,” Barnes said.

Maylee Barnes, left, of Bartow, and Lainey Harris, right, of Folkston, are the first two ABAC undergraduates accepted into the Georgia Rural Practice Veterinary Incentive Program.

The pair is shown at a recent event in Tifton celebrating the partnership between ABAC and UGA VetMed.

The report adds to ongoing university-led research relevant to veterinary medicine, animal health, and clinical decision-making.

university website: University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine