Resident Education Travel Grants
Attending the ACVS Surgery Summit can be life- and career-changing for a surgery resident. Recipients of an ACVS Resident Education Travel Grant are invited to attend the ACVS Surgery Summit, with expenses funded by the ACVS Foundation. The grants are given in partnership with the Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition.
Six ACVS surgery residents attended the 2025 ACVS Surgery Summit in Seattle, WA, through the ACVS Resident Education Travel Grant Program.
Aixa Megret Gonzalez, DVM
Winning this diversity grant is incredibly meaningful to me. At a time when inclusion and equity are more important than ever, this support and representation matter. I hope my journey inspires the next generation to pursue their dreams and know that they, too, belong in every space.
Yoko Nakamae, DVM
Attending the Summit through the ACVS Resident Education Travel Grant program is a powerful reminder of how far I’ve come. As someone from an underrepresented background, it meant a great deal to feel seen, supported, and included.
Clair Park, DVM, MS
As a Korean-American woman entering the field of joint replacement surgery, this grant is more than just funding for my abstract presentation – it is a meaningful step towards increasing diversity and representation in a specialty I am deeply passionate about.
Ligia Pentzke, DVM
I’ve long seen the underrepresentation of Hispanics in the ACVS community. This grant is more than support. It is, to me, a step towards greater inclusion. It empowers me, and others like me, to participate, connect, and help shape a more diverse future in veterinary surgery.
Gideon Stemmet, BSc, BVSc, MSc
The ACVS Resident Education Travel Grant is an opportunity to show others with stores like mine that we are not defined by our background and when we embrace opportunity wholeheartedly, we can reach our full potential and achieve the unimaginable.
Timothy Vernier, DVM
This grant will allow me to establish new relationships with many diverse professionals, collaborate with them on initiatives to diversify veterinary medicine, and discuss how we can further educate veterinarians worldwide so we can improve the lives of animals everywhere.
