BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Illinois Farm Bureau recently selected Mackenzie Michels, University of Illinois, and Sydney Bigger, Kansas State University, as recipients of the Illinois Veterinary Education and Training (IVET) program.
Michels is a second-year vet student at the U of I College of Veterinary Medicine. Bigger is a third-year vet student at K-State’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
The IVET program helps offset the high cost of veterinary education. The program loans up to $40,000 to as many as three veterinary students annually.
Loans are made for a period of two to three years. IVET awards recipients a $1,500 stipend during their fourth year in school to help pay expenses associated with clinical rotations. The loans are repaid over five years, during which time graduates commit to working in a food animal practice that services Illinois livestock farmers.
“Illinois Farm Bureau encourages veterinary students to pursue a career in caring for food animals,” said Tasha Bunting, IFB associate director of commodities and livestock programs. “To succeed, farmers need the services of a food animal veterinarian to help them care for their beef cattle, swine, sheep and poultry. It’s an opportunity to help bring a calf into the world and share in the love that farmers have for their animals.”
IFB established IVET in 2005. Since then, the organization has awarded more than $430,000 to 24 veterinary students who focus on caring for food animals in Illinois.
More information about the program can be found on Illinois Farm Bureau’s website.
— Daniel Grant, FarmWeekNow.com
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