2025 Oscar W. Schlam Lecture
“From Children’s Series Mysteries to Scientific Inference: The Emergence of Small Animal Epidemiology in Veterinary Medicine”
Philip Kass DVM, MPVM, MS, PhD
Dr. Kass earned his DVM (1982), MPVM (1984), M.S. in statistics (1988) and Ph.D. in comparative pathology and epidemiology (1990) at UC Davis. He joined the faculty in 1985 as an adjunct instructor and has risen through the professorial ranks during his distinguished career. He obtained diplomate status in the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine in 2007, and was appointed Vice Provost of Academic Affairs in 2017. His work has had global impacts as a researcher, teacher and mentor. He has brought evidence-based medicine to veterinary science, and contributed immensely to the profession and the advancement of the One Health approach.
Solving Medical Mysteries: Dr. Philip Kass Delivers 2025 Oscar W. Schalm Lecture
Oscar W. Schalm Lectureship
The Oscar W. Schalm Lectureship, established in 1988, honors the memory of Oscar W. Schalm, a founding faculty member of the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and an eminent teacher and research scientist in the fields of bovine mastitis, diagnostic veterinary hematology and clinical pathology. The lectureship promotes a tradition of scholarship, service and commitment to veterinary medicine and recognizes the lecturer’s distinguished contributions to the profession.
Previous Schalm Lecturers
- 2024 - Stephen J McSorley PhD
"Immune-alogy - Everyday analogies that help explain immunity to infection"
Stephen J McSorley PhD
Stephen McSorley, PhD, is a Professor in the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology at the University of California, Davis. His research focuses on developing immunological tools to study host responses to bacterial infections, particularly Salmonella and Chlamydia. By integrating bacterial pathogenesis with advanced analysis of innate and adaptive immunity, his work has identified key lymphocyte targets and contributed to vaccine development for mucosal infections.
- 2023 - Ivan R. Schwab M.D.
"Sensory Diversity and the Eye"
Ivan R. Schwab M.D.
Ivan Schwab, MD is an ophthalmologist and researcher known for his work on defense peptides, bioengineered tissues (including silk and the ocular surface), and, more recently, the evolution and comparative physiology of eyes. He authored Evolution’s Witness: How Eyes Evolved (2011) and has published over 245 peer-reviewed articles, along with numerous book chapters and five textbooks. Schwab has served on editorial boards including Ophthalmology, Cornea, and the British Journal of Ophthalmology, and held leadership roles in the Cornea Society, the Ocular Microbiology and Immunology Group, and the American Board of Ophthalmology.A summa cum laude graduate of West Virginia University (WVU), he earned both his bachelor’s and medical degrees there. After residency and fellowships, he joined the WVU faculty, later moving to UC Davis in 1989. He has received numerous teaching honors, was named a Distinguished Alumnus of WVU, and received the 2006 Ig Nobel Prize for Ornithology.
- 2022 - Lisa A. Tell DVM, DACZM,DABVP (Avian)
"Diving Into Hummingbird Research: A Small Bird with a Big Story"
Lisa A. Tell DVM, DACZM,DABVP (Avian)Dr. Lisa A. Tell is a Professor in the Department of Medicine and Epidemiology at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. A Diplomate of both the American College of Zoological Medicine and the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (Avian), she began her career in zoological medicine at the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., working with species from naked mole rats to giant pandas. She joined the UC Davis faculty in 1994 and led the Companion Avian and Exotic Pet Medicine Service.
Since 2006, Dr. Tell has served as Western Region Director and avian specialist for the Food Animal Residue Avoidance and Depletion Program, focusing on human food safety. She also directs the Hummingbird Health and Conservation Program and is a certified Master Hummingbird Bander. Her research centers on avian disease diagnosis, treatment, and pharmacokinetics in birds and small ruminants. She is a dedicated mentor to veterinary and graduate students.
- CE Certificate
- In order to receive a CE Certificate, you must sign-in before joining the lecture. A sign-in sheet will be available.
You must sign in with your first and last name, this will be the name that will be used for your CE certificate, and the email address to which you want your CE certificate to be emailed.
Participants are responsible for determining if specific programs are accepted for CE credit by their State Licensing Board. - Cancellation Policy
- If you are no longer able to attend the conference, submit a cancellation request via email to svmevents@ucdavis.edu.
In accordance with University policy and copyright law, the University prohibits distributing and/or posting on the internet any content from this conference/symposium/session without the explicit permission of the instructor and the CCPE office.