VPM Voice: Summer 2026
Originally Published
From impactful research to innovative teaching and meaningful community partnerships, members of the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine continue to make their mark. We’re proud to highlight faculty and students whose recent recognitions reflect the impact of their work.
Jacqueline Nolting named 2026 Community Engaged Scholar
Jacqueline Nolting, MS ’08, PhD ’18, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, has been named a 2026 Community Engaged Scholar, an honor that celebrates faculty whose work, developed in partnership with communities, creates meaningful, real-world impact.
A key component of Nolting’s outreach efforts is The Swientist®, a program she leads that brings biosecurity directly to communities across Ohio. While the program began as a youth-focused swine health outreach effort, it has grown into a nationally recognized, multi-species initiative serving swine producers, backyard poultry producers and poultry exhibitors, equine producers, youth beef producers and communities across the country.
Through workshops, classroom partnerships and outreach, The Swientist® connects people of all ages with the knowledge and skills to keep themselves, their animals and their communities healthy. This work reflects Nolting’s commitment to empowering communities through knowledge and advancing Ohio State’s culture of engagement.
Risa Pesapane awarded 2026 Outreach & Engagement Seed Grant
Risa Pesapane, MS, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, has been awarded a $10,000 Outreach and Engagement Seed Grant through Ohio State’s Office of Outreach and Engagement. Her project, From Classroom Science to Community Impact: A University-School Partnership for Tick-Borne Disease Surveillance in Appalachian Ohio, builds on a multi-year partnership between Ohio State and the Appalachian Ohio Tick Project (AOTP), led by educator Kip Brady at New Philadelphia High School.
The partnership brings together students, educators, researchers and community members to address the growing concern of tick-borne diseases in Ohio. Educators teach biology concepts through the lens of tick-borne disease ecology, giving students hands-on experience with scientific methods and advanced STEM skills. Students participate in activities ranging from hypothesis development and tick collection to DNA extraction, PCR pathogen detection and data analysis. This collaboration has also helped fill important surveillance gaps in parts of Appalachian Ohio where limited tick pathogen data previously existed.
Outside of the classroom, students learn about tick-associated risks in their local environments and help share that knowledge with their communities. Students have presented their findings at community events and professional conferences and have visited Ohio State’s campus to explore STEM careers and advanced educational opportunities.
The grant will support efforts to validate and integrate student-generated tick pathogen data from AOTP into formal surveillance systems while documenting the partnership’s educational and public health impact. Through Ohio State’s Buckeye Tick Test program, directed by Pesapane, researchers will help verify and analyze project data, creating a pathway for student-generated findings to contribute to broader tick surveillance efforts across Ohio.
By connecting classroom learning with real-world public health challenges, the project expands STEM opportunities in rural communities while demonstrating how students can contribute meaningful data to scientific research and disease surveillance efforts across the state.
Andreia Arruda and team receive teaching awards
Andreia Arruda, DVM, MSc, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, along with colleagues Isha Agrawal, DVM, PhD, and Jessica Mateus, PhD, has been recognized with distinguished teaching honors. Arruda received the Excellence in Leadership Award, while the team earned the Team Teaching Award for their collaborative and innovative approach to real-world learning experiences.
The Excellence in Leadership Award recognizes Arruda’s contributions to education both inside and outside the classroom. The award recognizes educational leaders influence change, advance initiatives, share their expertise and foster collaborative learning environments.
Arruda, Agrawal and Mateus received the Team Teaching Award for creating outstanding, hands-on learning opportunities for students. Through the Puerto Rico United Forces for Action (PRUFA) project, the team combined their expertise to design and deliver workshops focused on biosecurity and foreign animal disease preparedness and response. With a particular emphasis on foot-and-mouth disease, the training helps prepare future animal health professionals to respond effectively to foreign animal disease introductions that could threaten livestock industries and food systems.
Missy Matusicky receives Creativity in Teaching Award
Missy Matusicky, DVM ’12, MPH ’13, DACVPM, associate professor – clinical in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, has received the college’s Creativity in Teaching Award, which recognizes faculty who take innovative approaches to veterinary medical education.
She earned the award for her efforts to redesign the Veterinary Preventive Medicine clinical rotation as part of the wider curriculum transformation efforts, creating a more engaging and application-focused experience for fourth-year students. With much of the foundational material now introduced earlier in the curriculum, the revised rotation emphasizes hands-on learning, allowing students to apply their knowledge in real-world situations.
Students work directly with clients through Large Animal Services at Marysville Clinic, investigating herd health issues and developing evidence-based solutions. They also gain experience in small animal and shelter medicine, including work at the Franklin County Dog Shelter and Shelter Outreach Services of Ohio, as well as exposure to lab animal medicine through partnerships with Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
This award is part of a broader effort by the college to honor the outstanding work of its research, teaching and clinical faculty, and it recognizes individuals who demonstrate a willingness to take risks and implement innovative approaches in teaching.
Stefany Arevalo Mayorga earns top university and national honors
Stefany Arevalo Mayorga, MS, a fourth-year PhD student and graduate research associate in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, has earned two major honors recognizing her scholarship and research impact.
She was awarded the Presidential Fellowship, the most prestigious honor granted by The Ohio State University Graduate School. The fellowship is awarded to graduate students demonstrating exceptional achievement as they enter the final phase of their dissertation research. Working in Dr. Greg Habing’s lab as a student in the Comparative Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, she was among a select group nominated by the college.
In addition, Arevalo Mayorga was selected as the recipient of the 2026 Mark Gearhart Memorial Graduate Student Award from the Association for Veterinary Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine (AVEPM) during the Conference of Research Workers in Animal Diseases. Chosen from a competitive pool, this award represents AVEPM’s “Best Paper” honor of the year.
Her award-winning paper, “Environmental prevalence of Salmonella Dublin in Midwest U.S. dairy-beef operations: Associations with biosecurity and farm management,” advances understanding of how farm management and biosecurity practices influence the presence and spread of Salmonella Dublin in dairy-beef systems.
Sara Sequeira, DVM, PhD ‘26, receives two research awards
Sara Sequeira, DVM, PhD ‘26, has earned research honors at both the national and university levels for her work in biosecurity.
At American Association of Swine Veterinarians Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 1, Sequeira received a $1,000 scholarship through the Research Topics graduate student competition for her research, “Assessing connectivity and biosecurity compliance of vehicles in a Brazilian swine production system.” The session highlights research related to swine health and production, including virology, diagnostics, biosecurity, environment and animal welfare.
In addition, Sequeira earned third place in the Biological Sciences category at Ohio State’s Edward F. Hayes Advanced Research Forum, one of the university’s premier graduate and postdoctoral research competitions. Her work contributes to advancing scientific understanding and improving animal health and production systems, demonstrating impact across both academic and industry settings.