Western University of Health Sciences names Dr. Phillip Nelson to head College of Veterinary Medicine
POMONA, Calif. – July 3, 2007 — Western University of Health Sciences officials have announced that Phillip D. Nelson, DVM, Ph.D., has accepted the position of Dean, College of Veterinary Medicine. "I am very pleased with Dr. Nelson’s appointment as dean," said Benjamin L. Cohen, DO, Provost and CEO of Western University of Health Sciences. "Dr. Nelson’s charm, team building and organizational skills, and personal management style provides the perfect foundation to secure the College of Veterinary Medicine’s place as a college of excellence." Dr. Nelson has had an active career in teaching, research and academic veterinary medicine, with research focused on feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats as biological models for human HIV. Dr. Nelson joined Western University in 2005 as the Executive Associate Dean for Preclinical Programs at the College of Veterinary Medicine. He has served as Associate Dean, Professor of Academic and Public Affairs, and Interim Dean at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Mississippi State University. He was also Acting Head, Department of Small Animal Medicine, Surgery and Radiology at Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine. He is a graduate of Tuskegee University (DVM) and North Carolina State (Ph.D., immunology). Dr. Nelson is the recipient of numerous awards including the Norden Award for Distinguished Teaching in Veterinary Medicine, the Pegasus Award for Distinguished Clinical Instruction at Mississippi State, the National Research Service Award, and the AAGS Research Award at North Carolina State University. At Western University Dr. Nelson is a member of the WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) Steering Committee, and he chairs the university panel on the WASC Database. Dean Nelson resides in Upland, Calif., with his wife, Doris, their daughter, Nicole, a son, Vincent, and the Nelson’s granddaughter, Akayla; and a third son, Brian, resides in Houston, Texas.
