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 1959–1972. 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 2024 E. P. Pope Memorial Award was presented to Dr. Kristy Pabilonia during the 68th Annual Meeting of the AAVLD.
Kristy Pabilonia, DVM, PhD, is a Professor at Colorado State University (CSU), Fort Collins, CO. She currently serves as the Executive Director of Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories (VDL). She also serves as Secretary-Treasurer for AAVLD.
Dr. Pabilonia grew up in a military family who settled in Colorado Springs. She completed her undergraduate degree in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at the University of Colorado in Boulder. She worked as a summer camp director before and during veterinary school. She received her DVM from CSU in 2002. She completed her microbiology residency at CSU in 2005, after which she joined the faculty in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology as an Assistant Professor. She completed her PhD in 2012. For her graduate work, she evaluated the role of domestic ducks in the maintenance and transmission of influenza viruses in Indonesia.
In the first half of her career at CSU, she started the Colorado Avian Health Program (the NPIP State Agency for Colorado), developed an avian diagnostics section for the VDL, and coordinated the design and implementation of a new BSL-3 facility for the lab. She also developed, organized, and/or participated in numerous laboratory, biosafety, and poultry diagnostic capacity-building projects in more than 10 countries in Asia, Africa, and Central America.
In the second half of her career at CSU, she has served as section head for the molecular diagnostics section of the VDL. She served as Assistant Director of the VDL starting in 2015, then was appointed Director in 2020 and Executive Director in 2024. She served as the Interim Senior Associate Dean of the Veterinary Health System from 2021–2022. She has enjoyed researching a variety of topics, including influenza A viruses, diseases of backyard poultry, and zoonotic pathogens.
Dr. Pabilonia has coordinated National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) participation for the CSU-VDL since the inception of the NAHLN. She served on the NAHLN Methods Technical Working Group from 2006–2011. She also coordinates her laboratory’s participation in other laboratory networks, including the Laboratory Response Network and the Veterinary Laboratory Investigation and Response Network. She coordinated CLIA-certified testing of more than 280,000 human SARS-CoV-2 tests from long-term-care facilities and local county testing sites from 2020–2022 and has coordinated her laboratory’s response to numerous animal disease outbreaks.
Dr. Pabilonia has served on numerous AAVLD and USAHA committees, including the AAVLD Publications Committee (Chair, 2010–2015), the Committee on Diseases of Poultry and Other Avian Species; Committee on NAHLN, Government Relations; and the AAVLD Program Committee. She has served as an auditor for the AAVLD Accreditation Committee since 2009 and served as a member of the Accreditation Committee from 2013–2024. She has served on the Executive Board as the Secretary-Treasurer since 2016.
Dr. Pabilonia was selected for and completed the AVMA Future Leaders program (class of 2014). She received the Outstanding Faculty award from the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association in 2007, the AAVLD Distinguished Service Award in 2018, and the Oliver P. Pennock Distinguished Service Award from CSU in 2021. She is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists.
Dr. Pabilonia lives in Fort Collins with her husband, Dr. Brendan Podell, a research veterinary pathologist, and their children. She grew her family through her service as a foster parent for 12 years. When not working, she spends her time trying to keep up with her adventurous family, who love to ski and snowboard, mountain bike, scuba dive, and travel.
A word from Dr. Pabilonia
I am so honored and humbled to receive this award. I’d like to thank the Awards Committee for the recognition. I remember my first AAVLD meeting in 2003, when the AAVLD community welcomed me to the organization. Dr. Barb Powers encouraged me to get involved, and I’m so very glad she did. So many AAVLD members have had a huge impact on my life and my career. I’ve learned and grown as a part of this network, and I appreciate all of the great experiences I’ve had being a part of this organization. Thank you for your support and friendship over the past 20 years, and I look forward to many more years working with you.
I would like to thank all of my colleagues, past and present, at the CSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories, the Veterinary Health System, and the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, who make my job rewarding, educational, and fun. I would particularly like to thank the VDL team, as I would never have been able to do the work I’ve done without their support and hard work. I’ve had the chance to achieve because of their commitment to our mission and our clients. They make our laboratories great places to work, and I am very grateful for their efforts.
Lastly, I would like to thank my husband and my kids for supporting my goals and aspirations. I’m so proud of them and feel lucky every day to be surrounded by encouragement and love.