Meetings are the 1st and 3rd THURSDAY

at ANR 102 @7pm

Welcome to UTK Pre-Vet Association! We are a club at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville for all students interested in veterinary medicine. We are dedicated to providing social events, biweekly meetings, and service projects for members. Our community is open to all, so don't hesitate to reach out and discover what we're all about!

Learn More

ABOUT US

The mission of the Tennessee Pre-Veterinary Association is to stimulate student interest in veterinary medicine and to familiarize its members with what to expect and what is expected of them in the pre-veterinary curriculum, veterinary school, and as veterinarians.

By presentation of pertinent information regarding curriculum, scholastic requirements and other information, members will endeavor to promote a higher scholastic standard and to strengthen qualifications of the individual entering veterinary school.

We provide the opportunity for Pre-Veterinary students with various backgrounds and undergraduate interests to communicate their mutual interests.

Meet the Officers!

President: Laura Crispell

Year: Senior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet
Hometown: Nolensville, TN

Email: lcrispel@vols.utk.edu

I am honored to be the president of PVA this year! I will be graduating this spring with a BS in Animal Science, as well as a triple minor in Biology, Wildlife and Fisheries Science, and Honors Leadership Studies (phew). I also do large animal neuroendocrinology research with Dr. Whitlock at UTCVM. My interests are in small ruminants and wildlife medicine. I hope to one day pursue mixed animal practice!

I am very passionate about the outdoors and arts/crafts. I love the magic of creating something and seeing the final product. My life goal is to go to all of the National Parks in the US.

Please reach out if you have any questions/concerns about UT, vet med, hiking trails, etc.- I'm an open book. Oh, and GO VOLS!

Vice President: Mackenzie Joye

Year: Junior

Major: Animal Science Pre-Vet 3+1
Hometown: Greenville, SC

Email: mjoye1@vols.utk.edu

So excited to be the PVA Vice President this year! A little about me is that I am from Greenville South Carolina and I am majoring in Animal Science with a One Health minor! I also have the cutest cavalier named Cooper an obsession with Disney. I am looking forward to the many ways that I can help this club serve the community and grow the club as a whole!

Secretary: Beth Gillespie

Year: Senior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet
Hometown: Roanoke, VA

Email: egilles5@Vols.utk.edu

Hi everyone, my name is Beth Gillespie & I am serving at this year’s Secretary! I am a senior from Roanoke, VA majoring in Animal Science with minors in One-Health, Biology, & Nutrition. While my main interest is large animal medicine, I love all patients, big or small! I am heavily involved in undergraduate research & the housing department. When I’m not working, I love to walk my dog on the greenway, find new places to eat, and go out with friends. I would love to help you get connected on campus (related to vet med or not), so do not hesitate to reach out!!

Treasurer: Reese Rosenbloom

Year: Senior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet
Hometown: Gaithersburg, MD

Email: rrosenbl@Vols.utk.edu

Hello! I’m Reese Rosenbloom, and I’m honored to serve as your 2025–2026 PVA Treasurer. As a returning treasurer and fourth-year PVA member, I’m excited to bring both experience and enthusiasm to the team. I have a Siberian cat named Butters and a strong interest in small animal medicine. I currently work as a veterinary assistant at Northshore Animal Hospital and have studied abroad in both Australia and Belize to gain hands-on experience.

Outside of vet med, I’m a member of Delta Gamma and enjoy playing pickleball, baking, traveling, and hiking. I’m also a big coffee lover, and chances are you’ll catch me with a cup in hand. I can’t wait for all the fun meetings and activities we have planned this year!

Community Relations: Audrey Halfpenny

Year: Senior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet
Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, FL

Email: ahalfpen@vols.utk.edu

Hi everyone my name is Audrey and I am so excited to be able to serve for PVA as the community relations chair! I am a senior now at UTK and this will be my 4th year in PVA. I am majoring in Animal Science on the Pre-Vet track, with a double minor in Biology and Agriculture and Natural Resource Communications. I currently am an aspiring Large Animal or Equine Focused Veterinarian, cows and horses are some of my favorites so it’s so hard to even try and pick between the two! I am so excited for what this year has in store and GO VOLS!!

Merchandise Chair: Sami Benedetto

Year: Senior

Major: Biology, BCMB
Hometown: Frederick, MD

Email: sbenede1@vols.utk.edu

Hi everyone! My name is Sami Benedetto and I am beyond excited to be y’all’s merchandise chair for the 25-26’ school year. I am a senior majoring in biology with a concentration of BCMB and also minoring in animal science. I am extremely interested in going down the path of either emergency care or shelter medicine after vet school. I love taking my dog Stevie on runs and volunteering at Maryville Alcoa animal rescue center! I can’t wait for this upcoming year. Go vols!

Mental Wellness Chair: Julia Cutchin

Year: Junior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet 3+1
Hometown: Germantown, TN

Email: jcutchin@Vols.utk.edu

Hi everyone! I'm beyond excited to be serving as the Mental Wellness Chair this year! Mental wellness is not spoken about enough in this profession; I'm looking forward to providing you all materials to help avoid compassion fatigue and be as mentally healthy as possible!
So here's a bit about me- My family lives in Franklin, TN but I grew up in the Germantown area (bit outside Memphis). I will be graduating a year early this spring with a BS in Animal Science! I work in the UTCVM Pharmacology Lab as student assistant and just got hired at Countryside Veterinary Services as a night shift vet assistant! Additionally, I do cattle reproduction research with Dr. McLean and his lab.
In my free time, I love to spend time walking my dog, Louis, and training my horse, May! I am also trying new recipes, I adore baking and cooking. One of my other favorite pastimes is art, I've been on a painting kick recently!

Always feel free to reach out about anything! If you are needing any extra assistance coping with the pressures of being a pre-vet student, please send me a message. Just want to grab a coffee or get some Louis cuddles? Thats totally fine too!

Social Events Chair: Anna Richards

Year: Senior

Major: Animal Science, Pre-Vet
Hometown: Cincinnati, OH

Email: aricha97@vols.utk.edu

Hi! My name is Anna Richards and I’m so excited to be the social events chair this year! A little about me is that I’m from Cincinnati, Ohio and I’m a senior majoring in animal science. I’m also a member of Block and Bridle and Kappa Kappa Gamma! I’m interested in large animal or mixed animal general practice after vet school! I cannot wait for this year and please reach out if you have any questions! Go Vols!

What do I need to do to join?

1. Join our GroupMe! It's where we communicate most often. It is limited for current students at UTK (GroupMe link is at the bottom of the site)

2. Join our official roster on VolLink (linked at the bottom of the site)

3. Attend a meeting! They are at 7pm on the 1st and 3rd Thursday each month at UTCVM 105

4. To stay a member, see the "Current Member" page.

Email us!

OUR FEED

Happy Team Member Tuesday!! What better way to start a new month than with introducing our PVA Vice President Mackenzie!

Hi everyone I am so excited to be the PVA Vice President this year! A little about me is that I am from Greenville South Carolina and I am majoring in Animal Science with a One Health minor! I also have the cutest cavalier named Cooper an obsession with Disney. I am looking forward to the many ways that I can help this club serve the community, and grow the club as a whole!

Hey PVA Vols hope yall are having a good summer! We are so excited to be starting our #ThursdayThoughts series where we will be keeping brains moo-ving 🐄 with pre-vet facts,tips and more all summer long! Stay tuned each Thursday to feed your future vet self! #UTKPVA #FutureDVM #PreVetSummer

For our first Team Member Tuesday we want to highlight our 2025-2026 PVA President Laura and a message from her to our Vols!!

I am honored to be the president of PVA this year! I will be graduating this spring with a BS in Animal Science, as well as a triple minor in Biology, Wildlife and Fisheries Science, and Honors Leadership Studies (phew). I also do large animal neuroendocrinology research with Dr. Whitlock at UTCVM. My interests are in small ruminants and wildlife medicine. I hope to one day pursue mixed animal practice!
I am very passionate about the outdoors and arts/crafts. I love the magic of creating something and seeing the final product. My life goal is to go to all of the National Parks in the US.
Please reach out if you have any questions/concerns about UT, vet med, hiking trails, etc.- I’m an open book. Oh, and GO VOLS!

🐾MERCH!!🐾
We have extended our merch order form for one week only! Follow the link in our stories to place yours!
We have sweatshirts, tote bags, and tshirts!!
Order form closes on March 20th!

PVA RUN/WALK CLUB! 🏃‍♀️🐾
Hey UT PVA! Come take a study break & join us for our first run club! This will be a great way to de-stress, enjoy the beautiful weather, and connect with fellow club members!
More details regarding meeting time and location can be found on the flyer or the GroupMe.
Can’t wait to see everyone tonight!

ATTENTION PRE VET STUDENTS!!
The Herbert College of Agriculture (@ut_herbert ) is inviting you to a VMCAS Workshop! You won’t want to miss this amazing opportunity.
Our next meeting on Thurs. Feb 20th, will be from 6:00-8:00 pm in the Brehm Arena. Please RSVP for this event by Mon. Feb 17th. RSVP Link: https://forms.gle/Q2U2qAp8xv5eQACC7
See the link in our stories/“Event Info” highlight to register!
More details are listened in our weekly email!

Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Love, UTK PVA 🫶🏼🐾

TONIGHTS MEETING!
Come join us for trivia & a card making station!
Please refer to the weekly email and GroupMe for more information regarding tonight’s meeting.
Can’t wait to see you all there! 🍊🩺

Come join us for our first meeting of the semester!
Please see the attached flyer for meeting location and time.
Additionally, please see the email sent out for the excused absence sheet and additional information regarding tonight’s meeting.
Can’t wait to see everyone there! 🍊🐾

WELCOME BACK!
Welcome back to Knoxville & happy First Day of Class! We hope you all had a relaxing winter break and are ready for the new semester!
Reminder that we will have our FIRST MEETING of the semester this Thursday, January 23rd in the VMC TLC room 105 (the lecture hall across from Pendergrass Library). We can’t wait to see you all there!
Best of Luck Vols! 🍊🐾

THANKSGIVING POTLUCK🦃🍂
What a great way to end an amazing semester! We had a great time at our Thanksgiving potluck, with a surprise visit from UTCVM Alumn, Dr. Emily King! Thank you so much for coming to speak to our members, we were honored to have you! Thank you to all of our officers for putting together a great event, and to all of our members for being the foundation of our club!
Hope everyone has a relaxing and restful Thanksgiving break!

🐾UPCOMING EVENTS🐾
We have lots of exciting things happening these next few days!
CRUZE PERCENTAGE DAY🍦:
Stop by Cruze downtown from 5-9:30 to get an ice cream! Mention PVA at checkout and 20% of the proceeds will go to our philanthropy, the Brown Dog Foundation. Shoutout to our philanthropy chair, @j_ulia23 for working on this!
THANKSGIVING POTLUCK🦃:
Come join us for our last meeting of the semester tomorrow at 7pm! Please see the email regarding attendance. We can’t wait to see y’all there!

🐾MEETING TONIGHT🐾
Tonight we will hear from a panel of veterinary students as they talk about their experiences getting to vet school! It will be Q&A style so you can ask as many questions as you’d like.
Please note the meeting time and location. See y’all tonight!

💙Mental Health Resources💙
With exam season & the holidays approaching, we wanted to share this list of resources to help those who need it. Thank you to our amazing Mental Wellness Chair, @kristxn.olivia , for putting together this list!
You are never alone, and always have a community within PVA🧡

🍊PVA MEETING 10/17🍊
Tomorrow we will be hearing from our club advisor, Dr. Parker, as she goes over and explains some clinical case studies!
🐾PLEASE NOTE: New Meeting Place!
We will be meeting in the new ANR building that is directly across from the vet school and next to Brehm. We will share more details on where to go before the meeting.
Can’t wait to see you all there!

MEETING REMINDER! 🐾
We will be making custom experience trackers at our meeting this week! We will have notebooks, pens, markers, and stickers to decorate your personalized tracker!

🩺MEETING 9/19🩺
We will have our second meeting of the semester this Thursday, 9/19 at 7pm. There will be a Masters/PhD student panel to answer all of your grad school questions and talk about different experiences they can help you with!
Additionally, there will be a collection bin for our supply drive for Young-Williams Animal Center.
If you are unable to attend, make sure to fill out the excused absence form sent on the email!

MEET THE OFFICERS!
We are all so excited for this upcoming year! Please reach out to any of our amazing officers with any questions, concerns, or suggestions! GO VOLS! 🍊🐾🩺

🐾INTRO MEETING🐾
Come join us tonight in UTCVM room 105 (outside of Pendergrass Library) at 7:00pm for our first meeting of the year!
We will have our first guest speaker join us this evening to discuss all things vet school!
Can’t wait to see you all tonight!

✨COME SEE US!✨

Learn more about PVA at these upcoming events!
* STUDENT ENGAGEMENT FAIR this Friday from 4-6pm on Ped Walkway
* ANIMAL SCIENCE SMOKER next Wednesday starting at 5:30 in the Brehm Arena
There will be stickers, new member interest forms, and so many other resources to learn more about our club! We can’t wait to see you all there!

SUMMER SPOTLIGHT🍊🐾
This summer, many of our members got to study abroad to various places in South America and beyond! They were able to provide spay/neuter and vaccination services to many dogs and cats. We are so proud of them!

#govols #prevet #studyabroad #volsabroad

Easter potluck!! Thank to everyone who came out to the potluck and @sharren.marie for organizing everything with @utksigmaalpha & @utk_tcha_equids. Along with a big thanks to @utvolshop and @utcreamerytn for donating and providing us with some yummy ice cream!!

Merch time!!!! Orders close on Monday so be sure to place an order before then! A big thank you to our merch designer for these designs🧡

Social Calendar to finish out the semester! Super exciting events coming up including elections and a suture lab!🥳

We will be having a meeting tomorrow April 4th in room 105. We have a guest speaker coming to discuss large animal medicine. Also we will be going over the officer election procedures for next year!

UTK PVA is symposium ready! Thank you NC State for hosting this weekend.

We will be holding a meeting tomorrow, March 7th at 7:00pm. We have a guest speaker coming to discuss VMCAS, selecting schools, and how to apply!

First Study Night of the Semester!! Thursday (2/29) from 6:00-7:45pm in BAS 136! There will be small snacks and drinks provided. Great way to get a social credit and get some studying done as we head into midterms.

Don’t forget to go to chipotle tonight and mention you’re with the pre-vet association or order online with the code above. 33% of the sales tonight will go to the brown dog foundation!

Thank you to everyone who signed up to help! There was a change of venue so be sure to account for the travel time and check the GroupMe for updates!!

Our next meeting is on Thursday Feb 1st. We will have two guest speakers, the coordinators of the foul watch team along with the leader of an upcoming Costa Rica trip. This meeting time has been moved to 7:30 to best accommodate our speakers. We will also be going over semester requirements! We look forward to seeing everyone there!

Happy End Of Classes!! Good luck on Finals everyone and as always Go Vols🍊

Big thank you to everyone who came out to our thanksgiving event for the humane society!

Hey guys! For this week we will have a regular meeting on Wednesday with the EQUIDS quest speaker at 7pm. Attendance will be optional since it’s a different day. On Thursday we are playing trivia and having a thanksgiving potluck! This will count for attendance and if you bring food you will get a social credit.

Exciting news! We are collaborating with the EQUIDS club this Wednesday. We will be hearing from UTCVM’s assistant director of equine surgery, Dr.Jones. This is a great opportunity to come learn and ask questions.

The UTK Pre-Veterinary Association is hosting its first-ever fundraiser in support of the Brown Dog Foundation! It will be a percentage night at Cruze Farms and Pizza Barn in East Knoxville on November 15th from 4-9 pm! Just let the cashier know that you are with the Pre-Veterinary Association or that you are with The Brown Dog Foundation and a percentage of your order will be donated!

MEETING INFO:
The Meeting Thursday Nov 2nd has been moved to Nov 16th due to conflicting time obligations.

Upcoming social event🥳 it’ll be a super fun night and a great study break! It will be held OCT 24th 6-7pm in bas 263. Be sure to where your pjs🎃

MEETING INFO:
Our next meeting is Thursday 10/19. It will be a Q/A panel with 1st year vet students. It will be held at 7:00pm in Room 105.

This is a fabulous opportunity for those interested in UTCVM. Make sure to pre- register if you are looking to attend!

Hey everyone! Our next meeting will be held Oct. 5th at 7:00 in UTCVM room 105. We will be hearing from a orthopedic surgeon and a surgery resident about the field of veterinary surgery.

Member Spotlight✨

Name: Kristen Groves
Hometown: Athens, Georgia
Career Goals: Wildlife and exotic vet

We wanted to shout out Kristen for her outstanding participation in the club. As a sophomore in PVA she has been extremely involved in attending our service and social events as well as meetings!

MEETING!! We will have a meeting Thursday Sept 21 at 7:00 in room 105. We will have a guest speaker, Kayela Statom, discussing UTCVM and their program.

Hey everyone! Our first service event is tonight at 7:30 in BAS 130. We will be making some engagement toys for the elephants. If anyone attending could bring their own never used paint brushes tonight it would be greatly appreciated!

Meet our officers!

Hi, yall! My name is Alex Amburn and I’m your public relations manager( aka I run the socials) for the 23-24 school year. I’m a sophomore in animal science and a second year member of PVA. I’m super interested in pursuing shelter medicine after I complete my DVM. I’m very excited to serve as an officer this year!!! And as always go vols🧡

Meet our officers!

Hi, yall! My name is Kaylee Sneed, and I am gonna be your secretary for the 2023-2024 school year. I’m super excited for all of the exciting new changes and activities we have planned! I’m also currently applying to vet school, so I’m feeling the stress of that. But I can’t wait to get started on this new year of the PVA, and I’m here for anyone who has questions or needs anything!

Hello Everyone! This is our first Social Event of the semester. It will be this Wednesday (9/13) from 5-7:00pm in Brehm Animal Science (BAS) 130. You are more than welcome to stay the whole time but just show up whenever you can. This will be a group study session in preparation for some of the first upcoming exams. Some small snacks and drinks will be provided! P.S. This is a bi-monthly event, so our next study night will be Sept. 27th same time and same place! :)

Meet our officers!

Hey y’all! My name is Lily Robinson, and I will be your treasurer this year! I currently work at Fairview Animal Hospital in Maryville, and I love so many different things about this field that I am undecided about where I would like my career path to take me, but at this moment I’m interested in wildlife, conservation, and exotic medicine. I am super excited to be treasurer this year and always reach out to me if you need anything, PVA-related or not!

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Have questions about UTK Pre-Vet Association, or are interested in joining? Please don't hesitate to reach out to us! We're always happy to help :)

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UTK PRE-VET ASSOCIATION

Meetings are the 1st and 3rd THURSDAY

at ANR 102 @7pm