Board of Directors
President
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Jessica Fox, DVM
Fins Feathers Fur Fetlocks
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Dr. Jessica Fox, the Minnesota Shrimp Vet! Jessica is a native Minnesotan who has always loved aquatics. Throughout childhood she had tropical aquariums and often fished with her father in the land of 10,000 lakes, promising that when she grew up and became a veterinarian, she would take care of fish too! She has a passion for One Health, preventative medicine and aquatic veterinary medicine. Jessica has extensive aquatic medicine training, including the complete AQUAVET® program (I, II, III), University of Wisconsin’s Basic Fish Medicine Course, and University of Arizona’s Shrimp Pathology Short Course. She practices as a mixed animal veterinarian and lives in Southwestern Minnesota with her husband Mike and bullmastiffs Dexter and Meadow. Dr Fox has worked for over 20 years in research and development both in the human food industry and livestock feed and additives industry with her primary focus in improving gut health in agriculture and aquaculture species through natural solutions. She has a consulting business “Fins Feathers Fur and Fetlocks” and is an associate veterinarian at Marshall Animal Clinic in Marshall, MN. She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Master’s in Public Health from the University of Minnesota. She truly loves working with all creatures great and small. She is an animated public speaker and passionate educator. She expresses her creativity through painting, sewing, and making engaging powerpoint presentations; her husband says she was created to create. She loves traveling and meeting people from all walks of life on her journeys. Jessica’s personal mission statement is “to live life fully, honestly, and compassionately while making a positive impact on the health of the animals, humans and environment in the world around me.”
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Past President
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Rob Memmen, DVM
Gehrman Animal Hospital
12800 Wayzata Blvd.
Minnetonka, MN 55305
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Dr. Rob Memmen graduated from the University of Minnesota’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 2010 and served as the vice president of SCAVMA in his third year of veterinary school. After graduation he spent 3 years in Granger, IN. working a small animal practice and volunteering his time caring for patients and serving on the board of the St. Joseph County Animal Humane Society. Dr. Memmen co-owns Gehrman Animal Hospital, a small animal general practice in Minnetonka, Minn., where he has worked since 2013. He was involved as a participant in the MVMA Power of 10 Emerging Leaders group and then chaired the group for 3 years. Dr. Memmen was a director on the MVMA board from 2018-2020. He has been on the MVMA’s MOVE Task Force for four years and served as chair of the MVMA’s finance committee for four years. Dr. Rob and his wife Sara live in Minnetonka with their three children, Elizabeth, James, and Lillian, and their dog Annie.
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President-Elect
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Ned Patterson, DVM, PhD
U of M - Veterinary Medical Center
1365 Gortner Ave.
St. Paul, MN 55108
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Edward “Ned” Patterson, D.V.M., Ph.D., DACVIM (SAIM), is a Professor of Small Animal Medicine at the U of MN College of Veterinary Medicine where he has been on the faculty for 20 years. He received his D.V.M. in 1996 and Ph.D. in 2004 - both from the U of MN. He is board certified in Small Animal Internal Medicine (SAIM) and currently has a bi-monthly dog and cat seizure clinic. He has been funded for canine genetics and neurologic/neuromuscular research by the NIH, Animal Foundations, and breed groups, and has published 66 peer reviewed manuscripts regarding canine genetics and neurological and neuromuscular disorders including as a co-author of 9 consensus statements on epilepsy. For the past 7 years he has also been Director of Graduate Studies for the U of MN, CVM Graduate Program in Veterinary Sciences which has 40-50 M.S. and Ph.D. students at any one time. He is a past chair of the U of MN system wide Faculty Consultative Committee which is the executive and steering committee of the University Faculty Senate. He was on the organizing committee for the biannual International Conference on Canine and Feline Genetics and Genomics (ICCFGG) from 2013- 2022 including hosting the meeting in St. Paul, MN in 2017. He has been on the MVMA Board of Directors since 2020, and has been chair of the MVMA DEI Action Team since 2021. Outside of veterinary medicine he enjoys family time with his wife, parents, brother’s family, daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter, and he and they enjoy hiking and camping, pickleball, skiing, and travel with a special interest in wilderness canoeing. He had previously been on the Board of Directors of the teen wilderness camp YMCA Camp Widjiwagan for 9 years including 3 years as Chair of the Board.
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Vice President
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Lukas Wallerich, DVM
Inver Grove Heights Animal Hospital
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Born and raised in Inver Grove Heights, Dr. Lukas Wallerich has been working at Inver Grove Heights Animal Hospital since his senior year of high school. It was under the positive influence and guidance of the team there that he realized his passion for this profession. Dr. Lukas completed his undergraduate studies in biology at Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota in 2011, and graduated from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 2015. From his early days serving as the MVMA Student Representative, Dr. Lukas has remained an active member of MVMA and a supporter of MVMF. He has previously served as president of the CVM Alumni and Friends Society and chair of the MVMF Golf Committee. He currently volunteers his time with the Scholarship Committee and MOVE. His professional interests include dentistry, ophthalmology, surgery, and theriogenology. Additionally, he engages in active mentorship and teaching of both veterinary students and new graduates. At home, Dr. Lukas and his wife Julia have an energetic whippet mix. In his free time, he enjoys paddle boarding, hiking, riding his Vespa, gardening, and exploring new breweries. While he is a proud season ticket holder for the Minnesota United FC, his heart lies with the Minnesota Twins! Interesting fact: He ties his own bow ties.
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Secretary/Treasurer
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Paul Draheim, DVM
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| “It’s an honor to be treasurer of the MVMA, THE best state veterinary organization,” shares Dr. Paul Draheim. A farm boy who was drafted into the army, he then spent eight years at the U of MN, graduating from the CVM in 1983. He owned a practice in Shoreview, retired and sold the practice in 2018, and thinks retirement is great. Paul served on the VHA board as vice president and president. He served on the MVMF golf committee for several years, and is the current chair of the MVMF scholarship committee. He served on the MVMF board for two terms and as vice president of the Minnesota Veterinary History Museum. Paul’s life partner is Cindy Higgins and they currently have 2 Cavaliers. He likes to golf, garden, read, and laugh. They have a lake home in Scandia and go south in the winter to Roseville. |
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Director
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Travis Anderson, DVM
East Lake Animal Clinic
4104 East Lake St.
Minneapolis, MN 55406
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Dr. Travis Anderson is a small animal practitioner and private practice owner in Minneapolis, MN. Travis attended St. Matthew’s University and earned his DVM in 2012 after a year of clinical study at the University of Minnesota. In addition to practice ownership, he is currently serving on the board of AERC, and enjoys volunteering with the MVMA Surgery Suite committee. He also serves as a facilitator and board member for the Veterinary Leadership Institute. He enjoys the challenge and opportunity provided by building and maintaining dynamic and successful veterinary care teams. At home, he is supported by his wife Amanda, their dog Riker, and two cats. In his free time he enjoys traveling, playing guitar and banjo, and reading.
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Director
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Matt Dodd, DVM
Diamond V
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As a technical service specialist since 2020 for Diamond V, Dr. Dodd is responsible for providing technical support for customers in the United States, specifically in the Midwest. He earned his DVM from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 2001. Throughout his career Dr. Dodd has focused on dairy production medicine, heifer development, and record and data analysis. He has been involved with the MVMA over his career, starting back in vet school as SAVMA President. He has continued to be involved through the Bovine/Food Animal Committee, leading or assisting in the Annual Convention Bovine Track planning over the years. Prior to joining Diamond V, Dr. Dodd spent the past 19 years in private practice. He has worked at various veterinary clinics in Wisconsin and Minnesota, including ownership in 3 different clinics. Dr. Dodd is based in Zumbrota Minnesota.
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Director
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Kate French, DVM
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Dr. Kate French realizes her family veterinarian was a saint when he started taking her out on farm calls when she was 12. After college at UW River Falls, she served as a Peace Corps volunteer on a rural island in the Philippines. She attended veterinary school at the University of MN, graduating in 1990, and has been a small animal relief veterinarian most of her career, now edging toward retirement. She was encouraged by early mentors to join MVMA’s Ethics and Grievance Committee and was a MVMA Academy member right out of school. Mentor veterinarians made sure Dr. French was introduced to others at meetings, where she learned the importance of our Association. She is the chair of the Ethics and Grievance committee and volunteers at the MOBC.
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Director
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Ashley Plotkowski, DVM
Minneapolis Animal Care & Control
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Dr. Ashley Plotkowski graduated from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 2014 after completing her undergraduate degree at Carleton College. She always wanted to be a shelter vet and was thrilled to discover that this position actually existed. After finishing a year-long shelter medicine internship at San Diego Humane Society in 2015, she moved back to Minnesota and worked at Animal Humane Society for nine years. She now works at Minneapolis Animal Care/Control. Ashley has been an active member of the MVMA Governmental Affairs and Small Animal Welfare Committees, and previously served on the board of directors of the Association of Shelter Veterinarians. Ashley shares her New Brighton home with four boys: husband Nick, son Owen, and cats Cooper and Herbie. As a family they enjoy riding bikes and building marble towers. When alone, Ashley can usually be found reading (ideally outside), cuddling her cats, attempting to be crafty, or re-arranging her family’s list of home improvement project priorities based on what has been newly failing.
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Ex-officio Members
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AVMA Delegate
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Teresa Hershey, DVM, CCRT, DvMA
Westgate Pet Clinic
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AVMA Alt. Delegate
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Scott Dee, DVM, MS, PhD, DACVM
Scientific Solutions for Swine
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MVMA Executive Director/CEO
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Kelly Andrews, CAE
Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association
Executive Director
101 Bridgepoint Way
Suite 100
So. St. Paul, MN 55075
651-645-7533 (work)
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MVMA Governmental Affairs Committee
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Ann Brownlee, DVM
MVMA GAC Chair
Retired
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Jessica Koppien-Fox, DVM
MVMA GAC Vice Chair
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POTL Program Liaison
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Ashley Smit, DVM
Pet Poison Helpline
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Jessi Coryell, DVM
Medtronic
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MN Board of Animal Health
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Brian Hoefs, DVM
Minnesota Board of Animal Health
Executive Director
625 Robert St. N.
St Paul, MN 55155 |
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MN Board of Veterinary Medicine
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Pamela Johnson, DVM, MPH
Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine Executive Director 335 Randolph Ave. Suite 215 St. Paul, MN 55102
651-201-2844 (work) 651-201-2842 (fax)
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MN Department of Health
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Stacy Holzbauer, DVM, MPH
Minnesota Department of Health - Zoonotic Diseases Unit
State Public Health Veterinarian
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U of M CVM Dean
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Laura Molgaard, DVM (Dean)
College of Veterinary Medicine Dean's Office
455 Veterinary Medical Center
1365 Gortner Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108
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MVMA/MVMF Student Representatives
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Ella Olson
Third-year DVM student at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine.
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Alexus Songa
Second-year DVM student at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine.
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Caitlin Baltzer
Second-year DVM student at SDSU.
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SAVMA Chapter President
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Regina Kurandina
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Click Here for Board of Directors Meeting Minutes Archive (Members Only)
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