Dean’s Area

The season brings much-earned recognition and accolades.

February is ending with rain, giving the much-needed nourishment for spring to emerge. It is worth the gray clouds as long as they take their leave when appropriate.

On this truly gray winter’s day, there is a reason to celebrate. Please join me in wishing a happy birthday to our very own College of Veterinary Medicine!

The holidays are a time of giving. As a college, we give and receive. What we give to animal, human, and global health and well-being is tremendously important.

I am reminded today of the saying “the more things change, the more they stay the same.”

We have had a truly picturesque fall in the Palouse. This week temperatures are expected to drop and my morning walks now align with big sky sunrises and evening walks showcase the muted colors of winter sky.

Here on the Palouse, people are making the most of those last moments of sunshine that follow the chill of morning air. Today I saw a student rise from the Bustad lawn where she had created a wonderful, warm space to study among small yellow flowers. She moved to give her space fully to the […]

The winds have whipped up in the Palouse, adding drama to this week of ceremonies and education rituals. Last month I wrote about firsts. This month is about the annual welcoming events that tie us together as an academic community. At the college this fall, we welcomed 141 new veterinary students, around the same number […]

I had several “firsts” this month. I spent five days on my first canoeing adventure on the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in north-central Montana. Deep mud, lovely grasses, intense shale and sandstone rock formations, bighorn sheep, fossilized bison teeth, birds, more birds, and lots of sun. The people on the trip were wonderful. […]

Rain came, reminding us of summer’s tenuous hold on the Palouse. But, to me, the intense greens are worth the gray skies. We have those lively quail and red-winged blackbirds back (although, who really needs to sing at 4 a.m., honestly?) and my husband and I have discovered a pond dominated by yellow-headed blackbirds. Very […]