Performing Department
LG ANML CLIN SCI
Non Technical Summary
The goal of this project is to financially support the attendance of junior US scientists (graduate students and postdocs) to the 2025 Veterinary Immunology Symposium (IVIS25). This conference is unique because, in addition to a comprehensive discourse on veterinary immunology, it is also designed to bring Industry, Government, and Academic specialists together to discuss the development, licensing, performance, and distribution of vaccines and diagnostics for all domestic animal species, plus certain wildlife and exotic species. This conference has become the most important meeting on veterinary vaccines and diagnostics for all those interested in diagnosing and preventing animal diseases in all species of interest to veterinary scientists. The participation of junior scientists in this conference will greatly enhance the knowledge, skills, and interactions of those selected. This will aid in their development as future leaders in generating new strategies to improve the health and well-being of animals of economic importance to the United States and the world.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The goal of this conference project is to support US junior scientists (graduate students & postdocs) attending the 2025 International Veterinary Immunology Symposium (IVIS25, Vienna, Austria, August 11-14, 2025) by providing travel stipends. IVIS25 provides a forum that brings together an international group of scientists that focus on solving issues directly related to the health, well-being, and productivity of food-animal agricultural systems worldwide. IVIS is a keystone event for veterinary immunologists worldwide and represents one of the only forums allowing the concentrated interaction of researchers focusing on basic and applied veterinary immunology. Graduate student participation in this conference will greatly enhance the knowledge, skills, and interactions of those selected. This will aid in their development as future leaders in generating new strategies to improve the health and well-being of animals of economic importance to the United States and the world. On behalf of the American Association of Veterinary Immunologists (AAVI), we will provide travel funds to 10 US junior scientists (graduate students & postdocs) to facilitate their participation in IVIS. This opportunity will greatly aid their development as future leaders whose goals are to generate strategies that promote the health and well-being of animals of economic importance to the United States and the world.
Project Methods
Announcement and Dissemination. An invitation to apply for travel stipends will be distributed electronically with an indication to notify students: 1) e-mail notice to all active AAVI members, 2) distribution through the Veterinary Immunology listserv, 3) posted on the IVIS2025 website, 4) e-mail to IVIS2023 attendees, 5) e-mail to the Associate Deans for Research of US Colleges of Veterinary Medicine through the listserv of the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges.Candidate Selection. Only those applicants who meet one of the selection criteria (i.e., either a US citizen graduate student/postdoc or an international student completing graduate/postdoctoral studies at a US institution) and who submit a complete package will be considered. Each eligible applicant will subsequently be evaluated by a 5-judge panel appointed by the AAVI Executive Board using a standardized rubric (Table 1). Each application will be assigned to 3 different reviewers. Conflicts of interest between reviewers and applicants will be avoided using the USDA NIFA conflict of interest policy. The final score of each applicant will be the average of the three reviewers' scores. Applicants will be ranked by final score, and the top 10 will be selected for a travel award. We will coordinate with the IVIS2025 scientific committee, and applicants whose abstract was not accepted for oral or poster presentation will become ineligible to receive a travel award. Upon confirmation of abstract acceptance, the PDs will notify the selected and unselected applicants via e-mail. A ranked list of potential substitutes will be maintained if any selected applicant cannot finally travel to the conference. The names and abstracts of travel award recipients will be included in the fall 2025 AAVI newsletter posted on the AAVI website (http://www.theaavi.org/) and distributed widely to all AAVI members.