A Penn Vet Pilot Program of Alumni Teaching Student Labs Wins Positive Reviews – and a Possible Role for the Future
Dividing her time between two Philadelphia veterinary practices, Marisa Brunetti has plenty of work to keep her busy.
Yet last fall, Brunetti, V’10, made the time to return to her alma mater the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) and volunteer-teach first-year students a class on the basics of being a veterinarian. By the end of her first lab, she was hooked.
“This actually reconnects me to joy,” Brunetti said. “It’s been very inspiring to be with the students.”
Brunetti, who serves as the Alumni Board’s vice president of student and faculty connections, was one of several Penn Vet alumni who participated in a pilot program held last semester, where local veterinarians, including her, taught students fundamental clinical practice skills. Faculty members who launched the initiative are assessing the pilot based on feedback from the alumni and the students.
However, based on preliminary reviews, the outlook appears positive for alumni assuming a continuing role in supporting students’ education and the current curriculum goal of graduating career-ready, new veterinarians.
“We believe our alumni can provide instruction and perspective for a host of different skills needed to be a successful veterinarian,” said Mark Oyama, Charlotte Newton Sheppard Endowed Chair of Medicine and Chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine. “These include the obvious medical and surgical skills, but also skills in communication, team building, and managing a business.”
The thought going into the pilot was it could be meaningful for students and alumni.
“We really thought it would be a valuable experience both for the alumni as well as the students,” said Kathryn A. Rook, V’08, associate professor of clinical dermatology.
“Giving students the ability to talk with alumni, who are out in the real world practicing, we all felt would be impactful for those students,” said Rook, who is also Associate Chair of Education for the Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine. “And we knew that most likely there would be alumni interested in taking part.”
Laura Hamilton Brown, Penn Vet’s Director of Alumni Relations, has been a supporter of the project. She thinks having alumni back on campus and teaching students has been a great way to foster engagement and connection.
“It has been wonderful to see our alumni come to campus to share their knowledge, skills, and expertise in the labs,” Brown said. “It is my hope that together with the Alumni Board and the faculty, we can develop more opportunities for alumni to engage with and support our students.”
Students inspired by alums: ‘You see that magic’
Meanwhile, students in the alumni-taught labs said they found the experience positive and worthwhile in various ways.
Nathalie O’Hernandez, class president, found the alumni teachers inspiring.
“They remind you why you want to be a doctor,” said O’Hernandez. “You see that magic of ‘This is what it’s like.’ Having someone who was once in your shoes coming back and teaching you those basic steps lets you feel the professional legacy you’re part of.”
Several students appreciated the practical insights the alumni often shared that come from years of daily veterinary practice.
“It’s just really nice because they know things in a context beyond the textbook, and they can give you little tips and tricks that come from years of experience,” said Vincent Aloisio. He gave the example of one of the alumni teachers sharing her way of telling ‘flea dirt’ from normal dirt.
“I don’t think I ever would have picked up on that if I did not talk to her,” he said.
The students also said it meant a lot that the alumni took the time to teach and help them. Some said it gave them more confidence in their school and the future.
“We’re in the same boat. We’re going to be VMDs, they’re VMDs. So, it makes you feel like you’re already part of the family,” said Margaret Salter. “They want to help you because you’re a student. And they want to help when we graduate.”
Students said the alumni had already encouraged them to get in touch with them about internship possibilities in the future.
“We’re only ‘first-years’. We’ve just started. And to have these opportunities presented to us is so cool,” said Carly Mindell.
The teaching alumni were given a curriculum to study, including how to teach and how students learn. Then they took an exam. Just like the old days.
For the alumni, there were other parts of the experience that took them back to their own start in veterinary school, too.
Alumni going back to their roots – and loving it
At the Providence Animal Center in Media, where Kimberly Boudwin, V’09, is Chief Medical Officer, Penn Vet fourth-year students have been a welcome presence for quite a while through externships.
But when Boudwin, an Alumni Board member who wanted to get more involved, signed up to teach the first-year labs. But it was something else again to be reminded of being that new.
“It was really fun to see students just getting started,” Boudwin said. “Even just learning how to use a stethoscope. They were like, ‘Oh, we didn’t even know how to do that – how to wear it.’ But their energy is infectious. At first, I was nervous to see what teaching was going to be like. But they’re so hungry to learn. It makes it easy to engage with them. You can actually see the wheels turning in there.”
George Melillo, V’85, a veteran of private practice, is a founder of Heart & Paw, a large group of practices which has grown to about 30 offices in 11 states. He encouraged the students to think of them for clinical experience and internships.
“It was great to see the students’ eagerness about learning how to do the physical exam,” he said. “I was even struck by ways the models (used the labs he taught) were challenging, but they still had a very positive attitude, and they were appreciative.”
Melillo also seemed touched that the students “really enjoyed talking about my perspective around the profession.”
He said, “if the students find value in it,” he’d be glad to come back and teach again.
Robert Cafaro, V’14, one of the alums who taught last semester, recalled how helpful it was to have veterinarians to bounce experiences off when he was a student.
“I had a couple of doctors from where I worked over the summers that I would reach out to, and some had gone to Penn,” he said. They would say, “This is the hard part, it’s OK, just get through it.’ I think the more exposure you have to people who have been through exactly what you’re going through, and are on the other side of it, is just helpful to see.”
“We’re still learning, and they’re still learning, and setting realistic expectations for what to anticipate when you graduate,” Cafaro said. “When you see it firsthand as a student, that’s pretty impactful.”
Meanwhile, Brunetti said she would definitely be up for teaching again. But she has also begun talking with her fellow alums about other ways to help students – perhaps resume reviews, mock job interviews, more externships, mentoring.
“Our goal is to be much more connected,” she said. “This is not a one-off. This is hopefully just the beginning.”
Author: Rita Giordano
Source: https://www.vet.upenn.edu/
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