Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine made history Monday morning, with the first female dean the the school's 120-year history. Dori Borjesson comes to Pullman from the University of California Davis’ School of Veterinary Medicine, where she was the chair of the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology. The Beaverton, OR-native is a board-certified veterinary clinical pathologist and was the director of the UC Davis’ Veterinary Institute for Regenerative Cures. Borjesson received her DVM from UC Davis in 1995.

But what is most surprising to the new dean is how much it means to the women around her.

“I didn’t anticipate it, but this means a lot to a lot of people,” Borjesson said. “It speaks to the fact that if you don’t see anyone like you or see anyone that has traveled paths similar to yours in leadership positions, it’s hard to believe you can accomplish those goals.”

In a now female-dominated profession, where women make up more than 70% of veterinary students, Borjesson’s appointment makes her one of just 11 female veterinary deans in the United States. There are 32 veterinary colleges nationwide.

 “Women in veterinary medicine are now starting to have true role models whom they can relate to and watch build programs,” Borjesson said. “That’s important for women as well as everyone to see.”

Despite always knowing she wanted to be a veterinarian, Dr. Borjesson entered veterinary school later than most. While many veterinary students start at age 21, she entered at 27.

Ever since she could remember, it was always the animals that drove her.

At age 13, Borjesson took her first job at Sorrento Animal Hospital in Tigard, Oregon. She was also a volunteer at Portland’s then Washington Park Zoo.

“As kids, animals give us the chance to learn to care for something outside of ourselves,” Borjesson said. “They improve our mental health; they are essential in agriculture. We don’t think about it, but animals are powerful.”

Dr. Borjesson is a firm believer in the impact of the human-animal bond, the study of which is an academic discipline founded at WSU by the late Dean Leo Bustad. She co-founded the Mercer Clinic for the Pets of the Homeless as a veterinary student in 1992, a clinic that provides free care to the pets of homeless people in Sacramento, California.

The program, modeled after Seattle’s Doney Coe Pet Clinic, has been running for 24 years.

Dr. Borjesson said WSU’s One Health Clinic — a similar space where people experiencing homelessness with companion animals can get basic medical and veterinary care in a side-by-side setting — was a draw for her.

“We are not as generous as we should be to people who are different than us, or who have fallen on harder times,” she said. “We need to move away from that.”


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