Inspired by an exhibit of diverse works pertaining to Women's History Month at Van Pelt-Dietrich Library, the Atwood Library mounted its own display of works highlighting the impact and history of women in veterinary medicine.
The display features an issue of the Bellwether, Penn Vet's alumni magazine, from Spring 2015 detailing the history of women at the School. The School's companion website, Penn Vet's Women Pioneers, includes video histories of former Dean Joan Hendricks with two of her mentors, Dr. Jill Beech and Dr. Elaine Hammel.
Also included in the display are the memoirs of two Penn Vet alumnae: M. Phyllis Lose v'57 (No Job for a Lady) and Mary Clary Keyser v'44 (Mary, Mary Quite Contrary). Dr. Lose was the first woman equine veterinarian in the United States; Dr. Keyser was one of the first female veterinary students at the University of Pennsylvania, and enrolled in the school as veterinary medicine was shifting from being for the treatment and care of large animals, to the care of small animals. Both of their autobiographies tell of the difficulties they faced in entering veterinary school in the early years of female admittance, and their ability to overcome the challenges faced during school and in their professional lives, Dr. Keyser's in the form of a murder mystery!
Additionally, the display includes Our History of Women in Veterinary Medicine: Gumption, Grace, Grit, and Good Humor, published by the Association for Women Veterinarians, and Women in Veterinary Medicine: Profiles of Success, by Drs. Drum and Whiteley of Iowa State University. These books give a highlighted overview of the history of women in the field of veterinary medicine. Leaders of the Pack: Women and the Future of Veterinary Medicine by Julie Kumble and Donald F. Smith (also available online), takes a close look at the shifts and trends that have occurred in veterinary medicine since women have entered the field, and what this could mean looking forward.
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