Privacy Policy

Last modified: 2021-08-16

Introduction

Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition (“DVMC” or “We”) respects your privacy and are committed to protecting it through our compliance with this policy.

This policy describes the types of information we may collect from you or that you may provide when you visit the website diversifyvetmed.org (our “Website“) and our practices for collecting, using, maintaining, protecting, and disclosing that information.

This policy applies to information we collect:

  • On this Website.
  • In email, text, and other electronic messages between you and this Website.
 

It does not apply to information collected by:

  • Us offline or through any other means, including on any other website operated by DVMC or any third party (including our affiliates and subsidiaries); or
  • Any third party (including our affiliates and subsidiaries), including through any application or content that may link to or be accessible from or on the Website.
 

Please read this policy carefully to understand our policies and practices regarding your information and how we will treat it. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, your choice is not to use our Website. By accessing or using this Website, you agree to this privacy policy. This policy may change from time to time. Your continued use of this Website after we make changes is deemed to be acceptance of those changes, so please check the policy periodically for updates.

Children Under the Age of 13

Our Website is not intended for children under 13 years of age. No one under age 13 may provide any information to or on the Website. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, do not use or provide any information on this Website or through any of its features or provide any information about yourself to us, including your name, address, telephone number, email address, or any screen name or user name you may use. If we learn we have collected or received personal information from a child under 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information. If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under 13 please contact us at the “Contact Us” form on the Website, located at: https://diversifyvetmed.org/contact-us/

Information We Collect About You and How We Collect It

We collect several types of information from and about users of our Website, including information:

  • By which you may be personally identified, e-mail address, telephone number, social security number, or any other identifier by which you may be contacted online or offline (“personal information“);
  • That is about you but individually does not identify you, such as IP address; or
  • About your internet connection, the equipment you use to access our Website, and usage details.
 

We collect this information:

  • Directly from you when you provide it to us.
  • Automatically as you navigate through the site. Information collected automatically may include usage details, IP addresses, and information collected through cookies and other tracking technologies.
 

Information You Provide to Us 

The information we collect on or through our Website may include:

  • Information that you provide by filling in forms on our Website. We may also ask you for information when you report a problem with our Website.
  • Records and copies of your correspondence (including email addresses), if you contact us.
  • Your responses to surveys that we might ask you to complete for research purposes.
  • Your search queries on the Website.
 

Information We Collect Through Automatic Data Collection Technologies 

As you navigate through and interact with our Website, we may use automatic data collection technologies to collect certain information about your equipment, browsing actions, and patterns, including:

  • Details of your visits to our Website, including traffic data, location data, logs, and other communication data and the resources that you access and use on the Website.
  • Information about your computer and internet connection, including your IP address, operating system, and browser type.
 

The information we collect automatically may include personal information, or we may maintain it or associate it with personal information we collect in other ways or receive from third parties. It helps us to improve our Website and to deliver a better and more personalized service, including by enabling us to:

  • Estimate our audience size and usage patterns.
  • Store information about your preferences, allowing us to customize our Website according to your individual interests.
  • Speed up your searches.
  • Recognize you when you return to our Website.
 

The technologies we use for this automatic data collection may include:

  • Cookies (or browser cookies). A cookie is a small file placed on the hard drive of your computer. You may refuse to accept browser cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser. However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of our Website. Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you direct your browser to our Website.
  • Google Analytics. We use a tool called “Google Analytics” to collect information about use of our Websites. Google Analytics collects information such as how often users visit each Website, what pages they visit when they do so, and what other sites they used prior to coming to our Websites. We use the information we get from Google Analytics only to improve the Websites. Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit the Website, rather than your name or other identifying information. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personally identifiable information. Although Google Analytics plants a permanent cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit one of our Websites, the cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google. Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to our Websites is restricted by the Google Analytics Terms of Use and the Google Privacy Policy. You can prevent Google Analytics from recognizing you on return visits to our Websites by disabling cookies on your browser.
 

How We Use Your Information

We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal information:

  • To present our Website and its contents to you.
  • To provide you with information, products, or services that you request from us.
  • To fulfill any other purpose for which you provide it.
  • To carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us, including for billing and collection.
  • To notify you about changes to our Website or any products or services we offer or provide through it.
  • In any other way we may describe when you provide the information.
  • For any other purpose with your consent.
 

Disclosure of Your Information

We may disclose aggregated information about our users, and information that does not identify any individual, without restriction.

We may disclose personal information that we collect or you provide as described in this privacy policy:

  • To our subsidiaries and affiliates.
  • To contractors, service providers, and other third parties we use to support our business and who are bound by contractual obligations to keep personal information confidential and use it only for the purposes for which we disclose it to them.
  • To a buyer or other successor in the event of a merger, divestiture, restructuring, reorganization, dissolution, or other sale or transfer of some or all of DVMC’s assets, whether as a going concern or as part of bankruptcy, liquidation, or similar proceeding, in which personal information held by DVMC about our Website users is among the assets transferred.
  • To fulfill the purpose for which you provide it. 
  • For any other purpose disclosed by us when you provide the information.
  • With your consent.
 

We may also disclose your personal information:

  • To comply with any court order, law, or legal process, including to respond to any government or regulatory request.
  • To enforce or apply our terms of use https://diversifyvetmed.org/terms-of-use and other agreements, including for billing and collection purposes.
  • If we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property, or safety of DVMC, our customers, or others.
 

Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information

We strive to provide you with choices regarding the personal information you provide to us. We have created mechanisms to provide you with the following control over your information:

  • Tracking Technologies and Advertising. You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of this site may then be inaccessible or not function properly.
 

State Specific Privacy Rights

Nevada residents who wish to exercise their sale opt-out rights under Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 603A may submit a request using the “Contact Us” form on the website, located at https://diversifyvetmed.org/contact-us/. However, please know we DO NOT sell data triggering that statute’s opt-out requirements.

California’s “Shine the Light” law (Civil Code Section § 1798.83) permits users of our App that are California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. To make such a request, please use the “Contact Us” form on the website, located at https://diversifyvetmed.org/contact-us/. However, please know we DO NOT disclose personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes.

Data Security

We have implemented measures designed to secure your personal information from accidental loss and from unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure

Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information transmitted to our Website. Any transmission of personal information is at your own risk. We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on the Website.

Changes to Our Privacy Policy

It is our policy to post any changes we make to our privacy policy on this page. If we make material changes to how we treat our users’ personal information, we will notify you through a notice on the Website home page. The date the privacy policy was last revised is identified at the top of the page. You are responsible for ensuring we have an up-to-date active and deliverable email address for you, and for periodically visiting our Website and this privacy policy to check for any changes.

Contact Information

To ask questions or comment about this privacy policy and our privacy practices, contact us by using the “Contact Us” form on the website, located at https://diversifyvetmed.org/contact-us/.

Kemba Marshall, MPH, DVM, DABVP

In her role at the DVMC, Dr. Kemba Marshall brings a decade of private practice experience, a deep understanding of nonprofit operations, and a passion for driving diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) in the animal and agricultural industries. As the newly named Executive Consultant, Dr. Marshall will be responsible for championing the DVMC cause and working toward its goals. Her duties include board and committee organization, governance support, and driving awareness through effective communication.
 
In the veterinary community, Dr. Marshall currently serves as the Director of Veterinary Services at Land O’ Lakes Purina Animal Nutrition Center, where she oversees the diagnostic laboratory and coordinates human-animal safety training, biosecurity and Institutional Care and Animal Use Committee activities. Prior to that, she worked at PetSmart corporate, the University of Texas at Southwestern, IDEXX Laboratories, Metroplex Veterinary Centre and Summertree Animal and Bird Clinic. Dr. Marshall received her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine and her Master of Public Health from the University of Iowa. Published and well-connected within the veterinary community, she specializes in avian and exotic animal medicine.
 

Marie Sato Quicksall, DVM, CVA

Immediate Past President, Multicultural Veterinary Medical Association

Dr. Marie Sato Quicksall comes from a multiracial Japanese and American family. She attended The Ohio State University for both her bachelor’s degree and her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. Upon graduating from veterinary school in 2011, she began her professional career as a small animal general practitioner in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, before relocating to the West Coast. She currently practices on Bainbridge Island, Washington. In 2020, Dr. Quicksall completed additional coursework to become certified in veterinary acupuncture. Her professional interests include surgery, pain management and feline medicine.
 
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) have long been a passion for Dr. Quicksall. As a firstyear veterinary student, she founded the Ohio State chapter of VOICE (now known as Veterinarians as One Inclusive Community for Empowerment), later serving as its national president. While living in Pittsburgh, she coached for a group that promotes diversity and inclusion in her other passion: ice hockey. In 2017, she became a founding board member of the Multicultural Veterinary Medical Association (MCVMA) and currently serves as its Immediate-Past President. 
 
Dr. Quicksall is excited to continue her DEI work in new areas with the DVMC to improve and modernize the veterinary profession through antiracism and all aspects of DEI.
 

Karen Shenoy, DVM

Chief Veterinary Officer

Having joined Hill’s US in 2008, Dr. Karen Shenoy served in a variety of commercial roles before entering her current role as Chief Veterinary Officer. Dr. Shenoy is well-versed in both veterinary medicine and business, and her resumé includes small animal practice, wildlife rehabilitation medicine, teaching, and professional boards and committees. With a Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Minnesota, Dr. Shenoy dreams of a more diverse, inclusive and sustainable veterinary profession – for all.

Timbrala Marshall

Director, Veterinary Equity Inclusion & Diversity Programs

DVM

Dr. Timbrala Marshall has worked as a Veterinarian in the Atlanta area for over 11years. She is currently the Director of Equity Inclusion and Diversity for VCA Animal Hospitals.

In this role, she focuses on creating and nurturing relationships with Historically Black Colleges (HBCUs), Hispanic Serving Institution (HSIs), among other academic institutions. She also helps to build and lead programs to reach and support underserved communities.

Dr. Marshall attended Tuskegee University for her undergraduate studies and became a UNCF Corporate Scholar her Junior and Senior years of college.

Following graduation, she went to Michigan State University, College of Veterinary Medicine and earned her DVM degree. While in Veterinary school, she helped to charter the MSU CVM chapter of VOICE (Veterinarians as One Inclusive Community for Empowerment).

While serving as a Medical Director in practice, Dr. Marshall actively engaged with students through mentorship opportunities and offered shadowing experiences for middle and high school students. Dr. Marshall assisted many students through Veterinary school and is proud to welcome those students back into our profession as colleagues.

Dr. Marshall is honored to be a part of the Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition. She was born and raised in Selma, AL where she developed a passion for animal welfare as well as a keen awareness of barriers that often existed for underrepresented groups. She has dedicated her career to merging her two passions and finding ways to create equity and inclusivity within the veterinary profession. The DVMC represents this and is a cause the Dr. Marshall is very proud to be in alignment with.

Marissa Rothenbaum

Senior Manager, Provider Skills Training

DVM

Dr. Marissa Rothenbaum graduated from the University of California, Davis – School of Veterinary Medicine in 2011. She joined Banfield as an associate veterinarian the same year. After becoming a hospital leader she transitioned to Banfield’s headquarters as a member of the Veterinary Affairs team. Dr. Rothenbaum has always been dedicated to developing those around her, specifically clinical and communication skills, and enjoys supporting this for all Banfield hosptials. Dr. Rothenbaum is ultimately driven by her deep respect for the human-animal bond and the recognition of the role veterinary providers play in supporting that connection. Working with the DVMC closely connects to her “why” as diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging directly impact the relationship between a pet owner and their veterinary team and the quality of care a pet receives. In addition to her role with the DVMC, Dr. Rothenbaum is an officer for the Multicultural Veterinary Medical Association and is co-lead of Banfield’s Asian and Pacific Islander diversity resource group.

Robert Towns

Senior Global Product Manager Supply - Animal Health

Robert received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the College of Engineering and Architecture at Howard University. Since graduation, he has worked for several fast-moving consumer goods companies within the food industry where he led the development and commercialization of new products and processes to improve sales and profitability. Robert has spent the last five years as a Manager of Industrial Development at Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health leveraging skills acquired in the food industry to drive growth for top brands within the pet segment. In his new role as Senior Global Product Manager Supply AH, he will perform comprehensive product/project management and governance within AH Global Supply for products/franchises throughout the entire product lifecycle.

Robert has a passion for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging that dates to the beginning of his career as a co-chair for a diversity council, and now in a similar role for the African Heritage Business Resource Group at BI. The DVMC creates another platform in which he can collaborate on initiatives to improve workplace culture and awareness that will lead to more opportunities for people of color to thrive as their authentic selves.

Jennifer Ogeer,
BSc., DVM, MSc., MBA, MA

VP Medical Affairs & Commercial Marketing, Antech

As a young girl growing up in the Caribbean, I had always dreamt of becoming a veterinarian. As early as I can remember, I would try to save every sick or injured stray dog and cat I found living on the streets. My mother and elder sister are both life-long caregivers and nurturers, having spent more than 30 years themselves in the medical profession as registered nurses and midwives.

My dedication, hard work and determination were recognized when I received a scholarship more than 25 years ago to study veterinary medicine. I attended the Ontario Veterinary College in Canada and was extremely happy that I could pursue my passion to help animals and serve my communities. There were very few BIPOC students in the veterinary program then – and even less during my internship, residency, and graduate program in critical care. I was blessed to have wonderful, open-minded friends and influential mentors, who always encouraged me to express my individuality and be proud of the contribution I was making to the profession. 

For over a decade in academia as a Professor in Emergency Medicine and Critical Care, and now in my current role as Vice President of Medical Affairs at Antech, I’ve aimed to be a pillar of strength and support to other BIPOC pre-veterinary and veterinary students. It has been both personally and professionally rewarding to represent a positive, resilient role model for students and junior colleagues while helping them overcome obstacles as they also follow their dreams and succeed. 

Through my own journey in veterinary medicine, I understand that people long for that culture of safety and belonging, particularly in the BIPOC community. You must recognize that you’re going in with a higher purpose – and that purpose doesn’t sway based on your race, gender, financial status or ethnic background. My passion for helping animals, inner strength and gracious people along the way have carried me through this journey. I have had many phenomenal mentors that didn’t see me as a woman with a different complexion. Just like me, they cared about helping animals – and people, too. That transcends all boundaries. Looking forward, how do we build a community around us that goes beyond color, gender, race or even economic barriers? That’s the goal of the DVMC – and I’m thrilled to be part of it. 

Courtney Campbell, DVM, DACVS-SA

Board-Certified Veterinary Surgeon Host and Producer of Vet Candy on Watch

I have always enjoyed a challenge. My passion for animal science combined with pre-veterinary curriculum rigor lured me toward a professional career in animal health. However, I noticed that along my career path that role models, mentors or professional symbols that resembled me were noticeably absent. My observation became even more apparent when I realized that I had not met another Black veterinarian until I started vet school at Tuskegee University, a renowned HBCU (Historically Black College and University).

Being the standout amid an environment of high cultural homogeneity can be isolating especially within a profession where bonds, networking and professional connections can be paramount. In the face of this disproportionate reality, I found that I was constantly focused on social maneuvering to avoid feeling “otherized.” From the way that I spoke to the music that I listened to in the veterinary hospital to my hairstyle, my goal was to culturally intermix – or assimilate – with my colleagues. I relied on code-switching so that I didn’t feel like a foreigner in a profession to which I have dedicated my life.  

At times, feeling like an outsider can be shockingly surreal. After a busy day of consultations and surgeries, I scrambled to leave the hospital so that I could attend a local veterinary chapter meeting that I had been looking forward to. I remember arriving at the meeting wearing identical attire to my other colleagues. They often wore plaid shirts and khaki pants. When my colleagues entered the building’s foyer to sign in to the meeting, they were greeted with a collegial, ‘Hello and welcome to the meeting.’ I, on the other hand, was immediately regarded as one of the catering staff. Just before I could completely sign my name and collect a swag bag, the liaison for the company leaned in toward me and said, “Make sure you look to the side when you bring the bread out. I will be sitting to the left and you may not see me.” I paused for a few moments to comprehend fully what she said and what was happening at that moment. I replied amiably, “Hi. I’m Dr. Campbell, nice to meet you.” To her credit, she immediately apologized as I watched her cheeks grow crimson with embarrassment. I have the utmost respect and admiration for the hard-working folks in the catering industry, but that incident and similar scenarios have occurred throughout my professional journey. It reinforces a sentiment that many in the BIPOC community have felt while navigating the veterinary space: ‘you aren’t one of us.’  

Unfortunately, it is commonplace for BIPOC veterinary students and veterinarians to feel a lack of belonging and connection to their profession. It doesn’t have to be this way. The DVMC aims to meet the needs of the BIPOC community and inspire change throughout the industry.  My goal for the DVMC is to feed the appetite and imagination of underrepresented boys and girls who want to be veterinarians. Representation is the universal language of our imagination. We look at people that came before us and say, ‘I can do that.’  

I love being a veterinarian – and I want to inspire more people to be interested in veterinary medicine through activism, mentorship, and financial support.