Bio

Clinical Instructor, Large Animal Field Service

Dr. Brunsden is a Clinical Instructor in the Large Animal Field Service. After she completed her veterinary degree, she went to Mississippi State University for an internship in food animal medicine/surgery. She then returned to the University of Pennsylvania for a residency in large animal theriogenology. Dr. Brunsden practiced equine ambulatory medicine in Delaware for four years before returning to academia. Her areas of interest include reproduction, neonatology, and geriatrics. Outside of the clinic, she enjoys trivia, escape rooms, and exploring new breweries with her husband and dogs.

Education and Certifications

• BS: University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2012
• VMD: University of Pennsylvania, 2017
• Internship: Food Animal Medicine and Surgery, Mississippi State University, 2018
• Residency: Large Animal Theriogenology, University of Pennsylvania, 2020

Bio

Associate Professor, Animal Welfare and Behavior

Dr. Contreras is an associate professor of animal welfare and behavior and a resident in the American College of Animal Welfare. Her teaching focuses on understanding behavior as a means to evaluate animal welfare. She also teaches introductory veterinary behavior topics and facilitates veterinary ethics discussions for veterinary students. Dr. Contreras’s research interests include the evaluation of chronic stress, distress, and positive affective states in animals; non-invasive methods to quantify biomarkers of stress or pleasure; and veterinary education’s impact on veterinary students’ attitudes and beliefs. Before becoming a veterinarian, she earned an MS in ecology and studied the effects of rural development on grassland bird populations. After receiving her DVM, she completed a small animal shelter medicine and surgery internship and shelter research fellowship at Colorado State University. Dr. Contreras’s PhD in Veterinary Clinical Sciences focused on feline infectious diseases, namely upper respiratory infections in shelter cats.

Education and Certifications

• MS: Colorado State University, 2006
• DVM: Ross University, 2013
• PhD: Colorado State University, 2019
• Residency: American College of Animal Welfare, in progress

Publications

• Contreras, Elena T. and Raphael Vanderstichel. (2025, in press). Enhancing veterinary education through a novel animal welfare and behavior course at a new veterinary university. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education.
• Contreras, Elena T., Kate Bruner, Courtney Hegwer, Andrew Simpson. (2025, in press). Claw growth rates in a subset of adult, indoor, domestic cats (Felis catus). Journal of Veterinary Dermatology.
• Ziogaite, B., Elena T. Contreras, Jason E. Horgan. (2024). Incidence of splenic malignancy and hemangiosarcoma in dogs undergoing splenectomy surgery at a surgical specialty clinic: 182 cases (2017-2021). PLoS ONE.19(12): e0314737.
• Contreras, Elena (2023). Feline upper respiratory tract infections. In: Ettinger, SJ, Feldman, EC, Cote, E., eds. Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 9^th edition, Philadelphia: Elsevier Health Sciences, Chapter 205.
• Contreras, Elena T., Raphael Vanderstichel, Claire Hovenga, Michael R Lappin. (2021). Evaluation of feline hair and nail cortisol concentrations and preliminary associations with behavioral, physical, and environmental indicators of chronic stress. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 35(6):2662-2672.
• Contreras, Elena T. and Rollin, Bernard E. (2021). The convenient disregard for the Rattus species in the laboratory environment: Implications for animal welfare and science. Journal of Animal Ethics 11(2): 12-30.
• Contreras, Elena T., Francisco Olea-Popelka, William Wheat, Steven Dow, Jennifer Hawley, Michael R. Lappin. (2019). Evaluation of liposome TLR ligand complexes for non-specific mucosal immunoprotection from feline herpesvirus-1 infection. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 33(2): 831-837.
• Contreras, Elena T., Elizabeth Hodgkins, Valarie Tynes, Alexandra Beck, Francisco Olea-Popelka, Michael R Lappin. (2018). Effect of a pheromone on stress-associated recrudescence of feline herpesvirus-1 in experimentally inoculated kittens. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 32(1):406-417.
• Contreras, Elena T., Deanna R. Worley, Ross H. Palmer, Felix M. Duerr. (2018). Post-amputation orthopedic surgery in canine amputees: owner satisfaction and outcome. Topics in Companion Animal Medicine 33, no. 3: 89-96.
• Contreras, Elena, Kristy Dowers, Scott Moroff, and Michael Lappin. (2018). Clinical and laboratory effects of doxycycline and prednisolone in Ixodes scapularis-exposed dogs with chronic Anaplasma phagocytophilum infection. Topics in Companion Animal Medicine 33, no. 4: 147-149.

Bio

Associate Professor
Director, Veterinary Clinical Skills

Margaret Mostoller Fordham is the Director of Veterinary Clinical Skills and Associate Professor at the Shreiber School of Veterinary Medicine of Rowan University. After she received her DVM from Cornell University, she was a clinician in pet exotics practice and small animal emergency medicine for many years, primarily in the Philadelphia and South New Jersey region. She completed a residency in Special Species Medicine and Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania in 2008 and was a lecturer (clinical instructor) at the Veterinary Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania 2008-2010. She was a visiting professor of Special Species Medicine and Surgery at the School of Veterinary Medicine at Saint Matthew’s University from 2010-2019 and the Director of Veterinary Skills at the Long Island School of Veterinary Medicine at Long Island University from 2019-2022. She received her Diplomate in Veterinary Education from the Royal Veterinary College in 2022 and is completing her MSc in Veterinary Education in 2025. Her research interests include innovations in veterinary education, emergency medicine and anesthesia in exotic pets. She looks forward to helping the SSVM veterinary students learn the professional and technical skills they will need to be day one ready at graduation!

Education and Certifications

• BS: Smith College 1985
• DVM: Cornell University 1992
• Residency: Special Species, University of Pennsylvania, 2008
• MSc: Veterinary Education, Royal Veterinary College, 2025

Publications

• Webb J., Graham J.,  Fordham M., DeCubellis J., Buckley F., Hobbs J., Berent A., Weisse C. (2017) ‘Diagnosis and treatment of esophageal foreign body or stricture in three ferrets (Mustela putorius furo)’, JAVMA 251(4); 451-457.
• Fordham M., Roberts B, (2016) ‘Emergency and Critical Care,’ Veterinary Clinics of North America, Exotic Animal Practice.
• Eroshin V., Reiter A., Rosenthal K.,  Fordham M., Latney L., Brown S., Lewis J. (2011)‘Oral examination results in rescued ferrets: clinical findings’,  J Vet Dent 28(1); 8-15.
• Fordham M., Rosenthal K., Durham A., Duda L., Komaromy A. (2010) ‘Intraocular osteosarcoma in an Umbrella Cockatoo (Cacatua alba)’, Vet Ophth 13(1); 103-108.
• Limiñana R., López-Olvera J., Gallardo M., Fordham M., and Urios V. (2009) ‘Blood chemistry and hematologic values in free living nestlings of Montagu’s Harriers (Circus pygargus) in a natural habitat’, JZWM 40(4); 687-695.
• Eroshin V., Reiter A., Rosenthal K.,  Fordham M., Latney L., Brown S., Lewis J. (2009). ‘Evaluation of dental disease in a rescue ferret population’, Proceedings: Veterinary Dental Forum, Phoenix, AZ
• Echols M., Fisher P., Fordham M., Tibbetts L., Topor S. (2009) ‘The role of the avian/exotic animal technician’, JAMS; 23(1): 64-68.
• Wolgemuth, D., Behringer R.,  Mostoller M., Brinster R., and Palmiter R. (1989) ‘Transgenic mice overexpressing the mouse homeobox-containing gene Hox-1.4 exhibit abnormal gut development’,  Nature 337, 464-467.

Bio

Professor

Dr. Karen Inzana is the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the Shreiber School of Veterinary Medicine of Rowan University. Dr. Inzana received her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from University of Tennessee and completed a residency in Neurology at University of California at Davis. She obtained a Master of Science and PhD in Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin before joining the faculty at Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech where she served as a practicing veterinary neurologist for 30 years.

Dr. Inzana served in several administrative positions during her tenure at Virginia tech, but developed a longstanding passion for academic affairs.  She received an Advance Fellowship funded by NSF in 2006 designed to advance women leadership roles which allowed her to develop several initiatives in the college office of academic affairs.  In In 2007, she was named the Director of Assessment at the VMRCVM where I was responsible for developing a longitudinal competency tracking system for the fourth-year curriculum, initiated a curriculum mapping system, and reported college outcomes to both AVMA COE as well as Southern States Accreditation.  She also took an active part in developing a new, fully integrated curriculum at Virginia Tech and was a course leader for the entire second semester course focused on moving and sensing. For these efforts she was awarded the Grant Turnwald Award for Innovation in Teaching.  She served as Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Long Island University before joining the Shreiber School of Veterinary Medicine where her primary role is to assist in curriculum development and outcomes assessment.

Education and Certifications

• BS King College: 1977
• DVM University of Tennessee 1980
• Resident in Neurology and Neurosurgery: University of California Davis 1983
• MS: University of Wisconsin Madison 1985
• PhD: University of Wisconsin Madison 1988
• Diplomate American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Neurology): 1993

Publications

• Shell LG, Dyer KR. Brain Injury. In: Bojrab MJ, Bloomberg MS, Smeak DD (eds) Disease Mechanisms in Small Animal Surgery 2nd ed.. 1993; Philadelphia, Lea and Febiger, pp 1136–1139.
• Shell LG, Dyer KR. Disorders of Peripheral Nerves. In: Birchard SJ, Sherding RG (eds) Saunders Manual of Small Animal Practice. 1994; Philadelphia, WB Saunders, pp1165–1172.
• Shell LG, Dyer KR. Spinal Cord Diseases. In: MS Leib and WE Monroe (eds). Practical Small Animal Internal Medicine.1997; Philadelphia: WB Saunders, pp559-590.
• Dyer K. Lumbosacral stenosis. In: LP Tilley and FWK Smith (eds).5 Minute Veterinary Consult.1997; Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, pp 778-779  Revised 2000, 2002, 2008
• Dyer K. Dancing Doberman Disease. In: LP Tilley and FWK Smith (eds).5 Minute Veterinary Consult.1997; Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, pp 495. Revised 2000, 2002, 2008
• Dyer K. Hypomyelination of the Central Nervous System. In: LP Tilley and FWK Smith (eds).5 Minute Veterinary Consult.1997; Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, pp 720-721 Revised 2000, 2002, 2008
• Dyer K. Myelomalacia. In: LP Tilley and FWK Smith (eds).5 Minute Veterinary Consult.1997; Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, pp 843 Revised 2000, 2002, 2008
• Dyer K. Feline Polioencephalomyelitis. In: LP Tilley and FWK Smith (eds). 5 Minute Veterinary Consult. 1997; Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins, pp 958 Revised 2000, 2002, 2008
• Inzana, K Dyer. Introduction and Localization of Neurologic Lesions. In: Rhea V Morgan (ed) Handbood of Small Animal Medicine Third Edition.1997; New York Churchill Livingstone, pp213-219 Revised 2001
• Inzana, K Dyer, Massicotte C. Disorders of Peripheral Nerves and Muscles. In: Rhea V Morgan (ed) Handbook of Small Animal Medicine Third Edition. 1997; New York Churchill Livingston, pp 272-291. Revised 2001
• Inzana KD. Paraneoplastic Neuromuscular Disorders In: G D Shelton (ed) The Veterinary Clinics of North America Small Animal Practice. (2002) Philadelphia: WB Saunders.
• Inzana, K Dyer. Peripheral Nerve Diseases. In: S Ettenger and E Feldman (eds) Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 5th edition.1999; Philadelphia: WB Sanunders, pp 662-684 Revised 2003
• Forrester SD, Jones JC, Purswell BJ, Inzana KD, Leib MS.  Using web-based materials to enhance future veterinarians clinical skills. In: Brown DG (ed) Teaching with Technology,.2000; Bolton, MA:  Anker Publishing, pp 142-145.
• Forrester SD, Inzana KD: Disorders of micturition (Desordenes de la micción) In: Fernando Pellegrino, Adriana Suraniti, Luis Garibaldi (eds). Sindromes Neurologicos En Perroys Y Gatos. 2003) Buenos Aires, Republica Argentina: Inter-Medica.355-364
• Inzana KD: VISTIBULAR DISORDERS In: Fernando Pellegrino, Adriana Suraniti, Luis Garibaldi (eds). Sindromes Neurologicos En Perroys Y Gatos. (2003) Buenos Aires, Republica Argentina: Inter-Medica.pp239-244
• Inzana KD: MOVEMENT DISORDERS. In Fernando Pellegrino, Adriana Suraniti, Luis Garibaldi (eds). Sindromes Neurologicos En Perroys Y Gatos. (2003) Buenos Aires, Republica Argentina: Inter-Medica.pp233-238
• Inzana KD. Neurological Localization, In S Ruben (ed) Small Animal Internal Medicine Secrets (2012) Philadelphia: Hanley and Belfus
• Inzana KD. Seizures, In S Ruben (ed) Small Animal Internal Medicine Secrets (2012) Philadelphia: Hanley and Belfus
• Inzana KD. Neuromuscular Disorders, In S Ruben (ed) Small Animal Internal Medicine Secrets (2012) Philadelphia: Hanley and Belfus
• Inzana K D (2017)  Curriculum Mapping In: J Hodgson and J Pelzer (Eds.) Veterinary Medical Education: A practical guide. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons pp.36-42…revised in 2022
• Rossmeisl JH, Duncan RB, Inzana KD, Panciera DL, Shelton GD. Longitudinal study of the effects of chronic hypothyroidism on skeletal muscle in dogs. Am J Vet Res. 70(7):879-89. 2009
• Munana KR, Thomas WB, Inzana KD, Nettifee-Osborne JA, McLucas KJ, Olby NJ, Mariani CJ, Early PJ: Evaluation of levetiracetam as adjunctive treatment for refractory canine epilepsy: a randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial. J Vet Intern Med. 216(2):341-8.2012
• Hodgson JL, Pelzer JM, Inzana KD: Beyond NAVMEC: Assessment of the Professional Competencies.  J Vet Med Ed. 40(2):102-118; 2013
• Pancotto TE, Rossmeisl JH, Huckle WR, Inzana KD, Zimmerman KL: Evaluation of endothelin-1 and MMPs -2, -9, 14 in Cerebrospinal Fluid as Indirect Indicators of Blood-Brain Barrier Dysfunction in Chronic Canine Hypothyroidism. Res Vet Sci. 105:115-120; 2016
• Inzana KD, Vanderstitchel R, Newman S (2022 Virtual multiple mini-interviews for veterinary admissions. Journal of Veterinary Medical Education 49(3): 273-279.
• Banse HE, Kedrowicz A, Michel K, Burton E, Yvorchuk K, Anderson J, Anderson S, Barr M, Boller E, Chaney K, Inzana K, Matthew S, Rollins D, Salisbury K, Schmidt P, Smith N, Trace C. (2024) Implementing competency-based veterinary education: A survey of AAVMC member institutions on opportunities, challenges and strategies for success.  Journal of Veterinary Medical Education 51(2):155-16

Bio

Clinical Assistant Professor

Dr. Jett is a clinical assistant professor and section head of the Emergency and Critical Care department. She earned her DVM from Western University of Health Sciences, and completed her rotating internship, emergency and critical care internship, and emergency and critical care residency at Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center in Pittsburgh, PA. Dr. Jett is a passionate educator and clinician who loves the energy and unpredictability of the emergency room and ICU. Her professional and research interests are broad, but she has a particular passion for sepsis/SIRS, polytrauma, advanced fluid therapy, oxygen therapy, and the endothelial glycocalyx. In the classroom, Dr. Jett brings her passion for clinical medicine and her unique learning style to demystify complex concepts and make them usable on the clinic floor. She also strives to make positive change in post-graduate veterinary education by advocating for the well-being and fair treatment of trainees, including fair wages, appropriate work schedules, and encouraging work-life balance. Dr. Jett believes that advocating for fair and compassionate training aids in improving equity and diversity in our profession and among our specialists. Outside of her professional life, Dr. Jett and her partner compete in Strongman, performing feats of strength such as pulling vehicles and deadlifting cars. She also enjoys spending quality time on her little hobby farm in rural Pennsylvania with her small army of giant dogs, cats, and chickens.

Education and Certifications

• BS: Messiah College
• DVM: Western University of Health Sciences
• Small Animal Rotating Internship, Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center
• Emergency and Critical Care Internship, Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center
• Emergency and Critical Care Residency, Pittsburgh Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center

Publications

• Jett, L.A., Mooshian, S, Anderson, E. (2022). Acquired systolic dysfunction and subsequent congestive heart failure as a sequelae of hypoadrenocorticism in two dogs. Anim Hosp Assoc 2022; 58:297–302 .
• Vasconcelos, E. R.;. Billeter, S.A; Jett, L.A., et.al. (2018). Assessing cat flea microbiomes in northern and southern California by 16S rRNA Next Generation Sequencing. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases. 18(9): 491-499.
• Billeter, S.A., Diniz, P.P.V.P., Jett, L.A., et.al. (2016). Detection of Rickettsia species in fleas collected from cats in regions endemic and non-endemic for flea borne rickettsioses in California. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases. 16(3): 151-156.

Bio

Clinical Assistant Professor, Shelter Medicine and Community Engagement

Dr. Resnick’s teaching focuses on shelter medicine, HQHVSN (high-quality, high-volume spay-neuter) surgery, epidemiology, and public health. Her clinical interests include disease prevention and control in shelter populations and improving the welfare and outcomes of shelter animals. Her research interests include emerging infectious diseases, analgesia in the HQHVSN setting, humane management of community cats, and interventions to pet relinquishment. Prior to joining SSVM, she worked in several Philadelphia animal shelters where she also served as a surgical instructor for Penn Vet students. Before she found her niche in shelter medicine, she worked as a veterinary epidemiologist, zoonotic disease researcher, and an emergency and general practice veterinarian. She is passionate about educating veterinarians and the public about animal shelters, and encouraging collaboration between shelter veterinarians, private practice veterinarians, and all animal advocates to work together to care for the animals in our communities. She hopes to inspire her students to help keep pets in their homes by practicing spectrum of care and working to reduce barriers to veterinary care in their communities. Outside of work Dr. Resnick enjoys hiking in the Poconos with her husband, kids, and pitbull, cheering on the Phillies, and dining in the numerous vegan restaurants in her home city of Philadelphia.

Education and Certifications

• BS: Delaware Valley University, 1997
• DVM: Virginia Maryland School of Veterinary Medicine, 2001
• MPH: University of Texas School of Public Health, 2006
• Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine: 2007
• Infectious Disease Research Fellow, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, 2011