2025 SAVMA Symposium Recap!

Fifteen months in the making has officially come to fruition and the 2025 SAVMA Symposium is in the books!

In December of 2023, I signed up to be the Fundraising Chair for the 2025 SAVMA Symposium that was set to be hosted by UC Davis SVM. Flash forward to now, and I can say that taking that role was hands down one of the best decisions I have made. The lessons I learned and the connections I built throughout the process opened countless doors and have impacted the trajectory of my life.

Before we dive into the nitty gritty, here is a brief introduction on SAVMA, what the Symposium actually is, and why this was a big deal. "SAVMA" stands for Student American Veterinary Medical Association, and it is essentially the national organization for veterinary students. Every year there is a SAVMA Symposium that is hosted by a different veterinary school. At an annual convention, student representatives from a variety of veterinary schools present bids for the opportunity to host this event. When I started vet school, I learned that we had won the bid and were set to host the 2025 symposium! It had not been hosted by UC Davis since 2011, so there was a lot of excitement and anticipation surrounding this event!

The goal of the annual symposium is to bring together veterinary students from all over the country (and world) and enjoy a weekend full of lectures, wet labs, day trips, competitions, and social events. During the event, there are meetings for each school’s SAVMA representatives where they discuss important topics and vote on different subjects. There is also an exhibit hall where students can network and learn about internships and job opportunities. It is basically a weekend long party with a TON of veterinary students and one of the special things about the symposium is that a lot of the topics covered are things that students may not learn in the classroom. There are typically sessions on business, leadership, and varied species “deep dives”. This gives students an opportunity to dive into things that they may have never heard about as well as spark some new career interests.

Now that you now have a better idea of what this event entails, we can dive into how I got involved, my experience with the planning process, and how it has impacted my life.

Let’s just start this off by saying that first-year Izzy was very ambitious and wanted to be involved in everything under the sun (hasn’t changed much). Even though I already had two club presidency positions, a teaching role on the undergraduate campus, and was enrolled in a veterinary acupuncture certification, I jumped on the opportunity to be involved in the SAVMA Symposium planning process and was given the role of fundraising chair. I’m sure this does not come as a surprise to many of you, but in hindsight, it was a lot to take on at once and managing that load allowed me to learn some valuable lessons along the way.

I had never had a fundraising position and in all honesty, I had no idea what I was getting into. I knew that I genuinely liked people and considered myself an organized person, which seemed like appropriate qualifications for the role. I do not have a problem making connections and enjoy working with people to achieve a common goal. I had also wanted to challenge myself by trying something new and taking on a role that I did not have prior experience with and knew that the other members of the planning team would have my back if I needed anything.

The other members of the planning team were Haley and Morgan (general managers) and Lindsay (treasurer). The connections between the planning team ran deep even before the event planning started. Morgan, Haley and I had all gone to Cal Poly SLO and I had lived with each of them at different times during those four years. Fun fact, Morgan and I were freshmen year roommates in the Santa Lucia red brick dorms! Luckily the Cal Poly kinship did not intimidate Lindsay, a UCLA grad, and we all quickly bonded as a new team. Since most of us had known each other for 6+ years, we had a fairly good idea of how we all worked and our individual leadership styles. We also had a meeting in December, after we had all accepted our roles, and worked through some team logistics to make sure that we were a well-oiled machine. I had complete trust in that team from day one and truly believe that this event was able to be such a success because of our cohesiveness and respect for one another.  

As members of the 2025 planning team, we had the opportunity to attend the 2024 SAVMA Symposium in Tennessee. This was a great experience, and I was able to network with all of the sponsors. This came in handy when it was time to start emailing them about the following year’s event. For a more complete recap on our Tennessee trip, and all the shenanigans that took place, you can check out this blog.

Another unexpected perk of being on the planning team was the opportunity to attend the Veterinary Leadership Experience (VLE). I have spoken in-depth about this experience and can say that it has impacted the way I lead and interact with everyone around me. I also made countless meaningful connections and life-long friends during that week in Idaho. Those connections are still evident today and one of my favorite things about veterinary conferences is the ability to reconnect with all my VLE buddies! I can also truthfully say that if I was not on this planning team, I do not think that I would have ever attended VLE and would have missed out on meeting some incredible leaders. For a full recap of VLE and the amazing things we did that week, check out this blog.

In addition to traveling to cool conferences and attending an awesome leadership camp I also got to know some of my school’s leaders on a more personal level. Dr. Karl Jandrey was one of our faculty advisors and from day one, he had assumed the role of “mamma bear”. He had our backs through every situation and was our #1 HYPE man. There was never a meeting where he neglected to mention how awesome the planning team was, or what a great job we were doing. He also made sure to check in on us and even though he is extremely busy, he always made time to help if necessary. Getting to know him better and now realizing that I have his support for things that extend pass the symposium is an amazing byproduct of being on the planning team.

As the fundraising chair, my role was centered around the exhibit hall. I was responsible for contacting vendors and handling all of the sponsorship opportunities including wet labs, lectures, competitions, breakfasts, and anything else sponsors wanted to do to participate in the event. Through this process, I acquired a contact list of over 400 people and our exhibit hall hit the maximum capacity of 112 booths by January with a growing waitlist. While things shifted between January and March, due to the extensive waitlist we still had a completely full exhibit hall during the event! Networking with all the exhibitors for a year and a half led to some great relationships and I also became a student representative for a few awesome companies; PetVet365 and Standard Process!

Now that you know the background information, here is a recap of the actual symposium…

Wednesday night the planning team had our final meeting with our amazing advisors and made sure that everything was set for the days ahead. We enjoyed a nice meal together at Osteria Fasulo and reflected on the planning process. This was a great way to get everyone into the right mindset and get ready for an amazing weekend!

The event kicked off on Thursday afternoon with the exhibition hall set up. It was exciting to watch the empty basketball court turn into a full-fledged two-story exhibit hall! Vendors had the whole afternoon to move in and set up their booth before returning to the main vet school campus to officially check-in for the event. The night concluded with a social sponsored by the Dean which allowed exhibitors to relax after a day of travel and booth set-up before the official symposium kick-off.

Thursday night I also got to see my best friend from undergrad, Abby, who ended up staying with me for the weekend. Abby and I were inseparable during our time at Cal Poly, and this was the first time we had seen each other since graduation. I don’t know who was more excited, me or Churro who was literally so full of joy that his body could barely contain his wiggles. Regardless of who was more excited to see each other, spending time reconnecting was a highlight of my weekend. I am incredibly grateful to have such a supportive friend that I can go to with anything.

As the fundraising chair, my role was to essentially “live” in the exhibit hall for the weekend and be a resource for the vendors. I had a blast connecting with all of the exhibitors and putting a face to the plethora of email exchanges. I knew a few of the vendors on a more personal level and enjoyed catching up with them throughout the weekend.

Over the weekend I got to hang out with Tasha Lilly (UC Davis alumni) and her awesome ADF/CIVT team members Susan Recker and Chloe. If you are a regular on this blog, you know how much I adore them and everything that they promote! It was so much fun having them at the event and watching students learn about their amazing companies. I also got to hang out with my favorite Standard Process team Janine and Dr. Nancy Loes. All these women are world rockers in the field of veterinary medicine and are changing the future of animal health and nutrition for the better. I am fortunate to have gotten to know them on a deeper level over time and having them at this event (their first SAVMA Symposium) was fantastic!

I also got to spend a little time with my epic PetVet365 people! As previously mentioned, if you have been a consistent blog follower you understand how amazing they are and the impact that a Fear Free practice can have on not only animal health and wellbeing but also that of the client and veterinary team!

Friday night was the opening ceremony where we had the privilege of having Dr. Sarah Boston, a talented veterinary oncologist, stand-up comedian, author, and podcaster perform a hilarious skit. I had never heard a veterinary comedian perform and Dr. Boston did not disappoint! She had the whole audience dying and letting loose after a big day of events. If you need a little more comedy in your life, you can learn more about Dr. Boston here.

Saturday kicked off in a similar manner, I was still camped out in the exhibit hall but had an even better feel for the layout so I could strategically plan my check-in route and put out any fires before they started. The exhibitors were happy and engaging with tons of students, over 700 to be exact, which was great to see! I had the opportunity to chat with a lot of companies who had never attended a SAVMA Symposium and was thrilled to hear that they enjoyed the event and would be interested in attending next year’s in North Carolina. It is a sacrifice to sponsor a booth, fly representatives out to a conference, and work at a booth all weekend so this positive feedback was great to hear!

During the event I also had the privilege of reconnecting with Dr. Betsy Charles, who is an incredible leader that I had the privilege of learning from at VLE last June. In the simplest terms, Betsy is the real deal. She is an expert at fostering deep and meaningful relationships and has mastered the art of intentionality. The skills that I learned from her at VLE were heavily utilized during the planning process and I am grateful to have her influence in my life!

To top all of that off, I also had an extra special team of visitors on Saturday. My parents and sister flew up to show their support and see the project that the planning team and I had been working on for the past year and a half. It was so wonderful to see them and show them around the exhibit hall while also introducing them to some of my buddies!

Saturday night concluded with our Legen-Dairy Gala and a keynote address from the one and only, Dr. Temple Grandin! Dr. Grandin gave a wonderful address on animal behavior and her passion for creating a more fear free environment, especially for production animals such as cattle. It was wonderful to hear her perspective and understand how she uses her visual thinking to relate to these animals and create devices to help improve their quality of life. I remember learning about Temple Grandin during my undergraduate career at Cal Poly SLO so hearing her talk in-person was an absolute privilege and full-circle moment! The rest of the ceremony included some closing remarks from the planning team before introducing next year’s team from North Carolina. This “passing of the torch” is such a fun moment and I vividly remember when we were in Tennessee showing our hype video to kick off the 2025 SAVMA Symposium season.

Sunday morning began with a transition meeting with the NC State planning team and our AVMA advisor, Dr. Rowe. North Carolina State is our “sister school” so this could not be a more perfect transition, and I know that they will do a phenomenal job!

The rest of Sunday involved some Symposium clean-up, and the rest of the day was spent showing my family around Davis and soaking up some quality time together! We went to Ruhstaller’s and then adventured around Davis. I cherish every moment I get to spend with all of them. My sister's schedule and my schedule are getting increasingly more difficult to coordinate so when we are all together as a family, I try to be 100% present and soak it all in.

It is always a little bittersweet when something that has consumed a huge portion of time and energy abruptly comes to an end. For the majority of my time in vet school, I have also been balancing SAVMA Symposium things so suddenly not having that as something to work towards is weird. It has also allowed me to reflect on what an amazing experience this whole process has been and how fortunate I am to have such an incredible support system! From my family and the core four planning team, to our school and AVMA advisors, all the way down to the exhibitors there was a cloud of support and common desire for this event to be an absolute hit! Here are some of the main points I learned during the planning process.

1.        This is a privilege - it is something that you GET to do, not something that you HAVE to do. No one volunteered me for this position, it was my own desire to be a part of this event and therefore complaining if things got hard/busy would make absolutely no sense. I’m not going to lie and say that I was always super excited to attend every meeting or answer countless emails from certain exhibitors, but at the end of the day, this was an amazing experience that I wouldn’t trade it for the world. The odds of the SAVMA Symposium happening at your school while being in vet school are slim. And the odds of being a member of the planning team are even slimmer. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and is truly what you make of it!

2.        Trusting your team is everything! I knew that I could always rely on the other members of the core four planning team and that regardless of what happened, they would have my back. Fostering a safe environment where vulnerability was encouraged set the stage for a highly functional team dynamic.

3.        Communication is key and some people just do not read emails (and that’s ok). As the fundraising chair, I sent a massive number of emails. Regardless of the formatting, and attention to detail, there were always situations where people would not read them. That is a normal part of life and caused me to get creative with how I delivered information.

4.        You can’t please everyone! Regardless of how hard you try, you will never be able to make everyone happy and the sooner you stop trying, the easier things get.

5.        Don’t take things personally - smile and choose kindness. You never know where someone is coming from so when someone comes to you angry about something that doesn’t seem like a huge deal, try to take a second to center yourself before responding. Embody the Viktor Frankl quote, "Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom" and take a second to breathe. Odds are they are not mad at you, or even the thing that they are supposedly upset about. It is likely a buildup of many things and you were just the lucky one that got to witness the emotional explosion.

When big events are put on, it is easy to gloss over people that put in a ton of work behind the scenes and get caught up with the few that were recognized on the stage. It is essential to remember that putting on this event took a VILLAGE and would not have been possible without the amazing support from all our committees, advisors, faculty, exhibitors, friends, and family. Our committees handled event planning, lecture organization, wet labs, day trips, catering, transportation, and registration just to name a few things. To top it off, they did all of this with a heart of servitude and their passion for making this event a success was evident in their actions. Katelyn also deserves a special shoutout for being a volunteer in literally every aspect of the symposium! Whenever anything needed to be done, she was always there and did it with a smile. Katelyn, we all appreciated your versatility and would have been hurting without your help!

Our school advisors Dr. Jandrey and Dr. Olstad were always willing to step in and help regardless of how busy they were with their other roles. Having robust local support made the planning process much smoother and helped us more easily navigate any issues on the school level.

Our AVMA advisors, Dr. Lauren Rowe and Jackie Ross, were two incredible women who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to pull this event off. Since January of 2024 we met with them monthly and worked through every detail of the planning process with them by our side. They answered hundreds of emails and beautifully demonstrated transformational leadership. Instead of being overbearing and focusing on a specific goal with clear expectations (transactional leadership), they encouraged us to focus on shared goals that would produce meaningful outcomes. We had the freedom to create a symposium that matched our vision and could call them in whenever we needed assistance. This leadership style is hard to find, and it was inspiring to witness it in action and experience the results when it is executed appropriately.

It is also important to acknowledge the families and friends that spent hours listening to us talk about the symposium. I’m sure it was not easy to hear about the same event for over a year and I appreciate your understanding and support throughout the planning process. Having my family at the closing ceremony meant the world to me and I appreciate them taking the time to fly out, get dressed up in their western chic attire, and see this project come together. They are my biggest support system and there is not a day that goes by where I do not thank God for them.

Lastly, words cannot express how much respect and appreciation I have for every member of the planning team. Morgan, Haley, and Lindsay are all incredible leaders and put in countless hours to make this event a success. Their openness and vulnerability throughout this process created a safe space for all of us to come together whenever there was an issue instead of pointing fingers and creating tension. This was truthfully the least dramatic team I have ever worked with. We all trusted each other to get things done and were open with each other when we needed extra support. This trust and respect came in handy during the symposium when, as a team, we were put in a difficult situation that tested our values and required some intense thought and decision making. I am beyond proud of each of these ladies and know that this bond will last a lifetime.