Abstract
The E. P. Pope Memorial Award is presented in memory of Dr. Edward P. Pope who was one of the founders of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD) and who served with distinction as its Secretary-Treasurer from 1950 to 1972. The award was established in his honor in 1974. The Pope Award is the highest award given by the Association and is presented to an individual who has made noteworthy and significant contributions to the Association in regard to implementing and advancing the recognition of the specialty of veterinary diagnostic laboratory medicine.
The 2016 E. P. Pope Memorial Award was presented to Dr. Lanny Pace during the 60th Annual Meeting of the AAVLD in San Diego, CA. Dr. Pace holds undergraduate and DVM degrees from Mississippi State University (MSU) and a PhD from Louisiana State University (LSU). He is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP). Since completion of his pathology residency and PhD at LSU in 1986, Dr. Pace has served in diagnostic and academic appointments at Murray State University (1986–1988), the University of Missouri (1988–2000), and MSU (2000–present). As a diagnostic pathologist in the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, he taught anatomic pathology and animal disease courses, participated in pathology residency training and graduate courses, and served as assistant director of the laboratory. In 2000, Dr. Pace returned to his alma mater as Executive Director of the Mississippi Veterinary Research & Diagnostic Laboratory System and Professor of Pathology, Department of Pathobiology & Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, MSU. From July 2001 to June 2003, Dr. Pace also served as Department Head for the Department of Pathobiology & Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine. He is responsible for the administrative oversight and leadership of the state’s veterinary diagnostic laboratory system. The system includes a full service, all species laboratory in Pearl, a poultry diagnostic laboratory in Pearl, an aquatic diagnostic laboratory in Stoneville, and a full-service, all-species diagnostic and teaching laboratory at CVM in Starkville. At MSU, Dr. Pace was involved in planning and securing funding of $18 million for construction of a new laboratory in Pearl to replace an outdated facility in Jackson and in planning and construction of a $12 million renovation of the College of Veterinary Medicine necropsy laboratory in Starkville. Dr. Pace has authored or co-authored 59 peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals, authored or co-authored 124 abstracts from conference presentations, and has been PI, Co-PI, or Collaborator on over $3.1 million in grants and contracts. Dr. Pace has served as committee member or major advisor on 17 MS or PhD graduate committees.
Throughout his career, Dr. Pace has been active in many state and national associations related to veterinary medicine and animal agriculture. In AAVLD, Dr. Pace is currently a member of the House of Delegates and completed 6 years as the Southeast region representative on the Executive Board in 2017. He has served as chair of the Financial Advisory Committee and co-chair of the Laboratory Directors Committee. He has also served or is currently a member of the following AAVLD committees: Accreditation, Pathology, Laboratory Safety, Enteric Diseases, Government Relations, Quality Assurance, and AAVLD/United States Animal Health Association (USAHA) committee on the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN). He has served terms on the NAHLN Steering Committee and NAHLN Coordinating Council, including serving as the state co-Chair for the NAHLN. He has a long association with the National Institute for Animal Agriculture (NIAA) and has served on the NIAA Board of Directors and Executive Committee and has chaired the Emerging Diseases Committee, as well as serving on many other NIAA councils and committees. Dr. Pace has served or is currently active on various additional committees of the USAHA, the American Veterinary Medical Association, and ACVP. He is also a member of the C. L. Davis Foundation for the Advancement of Veterinary & Comparative Pathology and the American Association of Swine Veterinarians.
At the state level, Dr. Pace has served as a district representative on the Executive Board of the Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association and has served as Vice President, President Elect, President, and Immediate Past President of the state association.
Dr. Pace’s service to the university, veterinary, and animal agriculture communities has been recognized through the following awards: the 2000 Alumnus of the Year, MSU College of Veterinary Medicine; the 2005 Dean’s Pegasus Award for Service, MSU College of Veterinary Medicine; the 2009 NIAA President’s Award, the 2015 NIAA Advocate for Animal Agriculture Award, and the 2016 USDA Abraham Lincoln Honor Award (Group Award to NAHLN Coordinating Council while serving as state co-Chair of the NAHLN).
A word from Dr. Pace
It is truly an honor to be recognized by AAVLD with the E. P. Pope Memorial Award. Throughout my career I have been blessed to work with great mentors, colleagues, and coworkers with exceptional dedication to and passion for veterinary diagnostics. I accept this award on behalf of their efforts. I want to thank my family for allowing my many days and nights away from home while on my career journey. I also want to thank MSU for supporting and encouraging participation in AAVLD activities. Thank you again for this honor and I look forward to continued service to AAVLD.