Ken Jacobsen (’77 BS; ’82 DVM) knows the value of an excellent education. As a WSU graduate, he says his education was central to his success as a veterinarian and a businessman. So when he and his wife, Lori, had the opportunity to give back, a gift to the Teaching Academy was a natural fit.
In 2011, the Jacobsens gave $90,000 to the Teaching Academy to support our educators. Their generosity, combined with the generosity of others, makes a real difference for the quality of our instruction and for our students’ success.
“I owe everything to the WSU Veterinary College”
-Dr. Ken Jacobsen
and their dog Lucy.
“I was so inspired by my instructors that I wanted to help give teachers everything they need to excel,” says Jacobsen, who’s been a practicing veterinarian at the Redwood Animal Hospital in Redmond, Washington since 1992. “I was close to many of my professors and they formed me as a practitioner.”
Faculty at the college created the Teaching Academy in 2010 to foster innovative curriculum. Compared to standard classroom lecturing, when students are actively engaged they learn more, are better able to remember what they’ve learned, and their problems solving skills improve.
“From research we know there are better ways of teaching than hour after hour of lecture,” says Steve Hines, associate dean for Teaching and Learning and director of the Teaching Academy. “When students are engaged the material is internalized, not just memorized.”
When instructors and students work as a team it can enhance the veterinary practice, explains Jacobsen. He believes this type of partnership can be fostered by helping our faculty become even better teachers.
“We can no longer train veterinarians the way I was trained,” said Jacobsen. “Because of the high cost of education we have to train them faster. And we have to train them better.”