BATON ROUGE, La. (LSU) – Dr. Oliver Garden has been named Dean of the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM) following a national search.
Garden currently serves as the Chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences and Advanced Medicine and the Henry and Corinne R. Bower Professor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Garden will take over his role as dean on August 31, subject to the approval of the LSU supervisory board.
“We are very pleased, Dr. Garden to our LSU family, ”said LSU President Tom Galligan. “With more than two decades of impressive experience at leading research universities in the United States and Great Britain, Dr. Garden is the ideal person to lead the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine as the next dean and further develop her position as an outstanding veterinarian. “School for world-class academics, research and public service.”
Garden’s background as a model researcher, administrator, medical practitioner and professor with dual expertise as clinician and researcher positions him well to lead the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, ranked 8th among veterinary schools nationwide and known for its academic rigor and science is success. In his leadership role as chair of the department at the University of Pennsylvania, Garden worked with centers on peripheral campuses and successfully led an extensive group of staff including faculty, clinical and research departments, nurses, interns, interns, and administrative and allied health professionals.
“Dr. Garden’s academic achievements, innovative leadership skills and extensive research references make him well-placed to advance the school’s mission of integrating cutting-edge research and exceptional clinical care,” said Stacia Haynie, LSU Executive Vice President & Provost. Welcome to Dr. Garden at LSU and I am confident that the SVM’s tradition of excellence will continue to flourish under his expert guidance. “
Garden will lead the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, a dynamic community dedicated to saving lives, finding cures, and transforming lives through outstanding clinical and nonprofit services, excellence in education, and groundbreaking scientific research. The school’s main research areas can be seen in its Center of Competence for Infectious Diseases, the Equine Health Study Program, the Department of Biotechnology and Molecular Medicine, the Department of Laboratory Animal Medicine and the Laboratory for Equine and Comparative Orthopedic Research. The SVM faculty conducts pioneering comparative biomedical and translational research and has successfully received research grants from a number of non-university funding agencies including NIH, USDA-NIFA, NSF, and the Morris Animal Foundation.
As Dean, Garden will oversee three academic departments within the school: Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Pathobiological Sciences, and Veterinary Clinical Sciences. He will also oversee the Veterinary Medical Library, Veterinary Teaching Hospital & Clinic, and the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. He will lead a diverse learning environment for professionals and PhD students, residents and interns, and postdocs.
“It is the honor of life to be entrusted with the Dean’s Office of the Veterinary Faculty,” said Garden. “I couldn’t be more excited to be part of the LSU family, and I am very much looking forward to working with the students, staff, faculty and alumni of this great academic institution to contribute to our world-class programs in teaching, research, and the public Service.”
Garden’s main research interest focuses on mechanisms of peripheral tolerance in health and disease, which include the mouse, rat, and canine model types of autoimmune diseases and cancer. In this context, his work has examined the role of regulatory T cells and, more recently, of myeloid-derived suppressor cells.
Garden received a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacology with Basic Biomedical Sciences from King’s College London, UK in 1990, a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine from Royal Veterinary College, UK in 1993 and a PhD in Philosophy in Gastrointestinal Immunology from Royal Veterinary College in 1998 .
In addition to the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Garden held positions at the Royal Veterinary College, the University of South Carolina, Cornell University and Imperial College London, UK, as well as visiting professor at Queen Mary University of London. He holds numerous specialty qualifications, including board certification in internal medicine of small animals by the American and European Colleges of Veterinary Internal Medicine, both specialist and fellowship status from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and the fellowship from the Higher Education Academy .
Garden will succeed Joel Baines, who has served as Dean since 2014 and will resume his position as a full-time faculty member within the school. With a research background in the pathobiological sciences and particularly in animal viruses, Baines was instrumental in running the university during the pandemic. Baines has overseen an accelerated research funding program for the school and has successfully received a $ 11 million grant to create the Center for Preclinical Cancer Research. Baines has also successfully raised funds for the new Stephenson Pet Clinic, which will expand pet wellness services and provide much-needed clinical care space.
More information about Dr. Garden can be found in his résumé at https://lsu.edu/dean-svm-search/docs/garden-cv.pdf.
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