Texas A&M VMBS Announces Vemulapalli As New Executive Associate Dean
Story by Megan Myers, VMBS Communications
Dr. Ramesh Vemulapalli has been selected as the new executive associate dean of the Texas A&M University School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (VMBS), effective Oct. 1.
Vemulapalli previously served as a professor and head of the VMBS’ Department of Veterinary Pathobiology (VTPB), a position he held for the past six years.
In this new role, Vemulapalli will hold the second-highest administrative position at the school and will be responsible for developing and implementing best practices that promote the career success of VMBS faculty, in close collaboration with VMBS department heads.
“I am honored and excited to serve the VMBS community as executive associate dean, and I am thrilled about the opportunity to help move our academic programs forward on the exciting path to preeminence,” Vemulapalli said.
“One of my priorities in this role is to lead efforts to promote faculty excellence,” he said. “We have incredibly productive, world-class faculty and we should provide them with opportunities to do their personal best at the VMBS.”
Vemulapalli earned a Bachelor of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry from Andhra Pradesh Agricultural University in 1986, followed by a Master of Veterinary Science from the Indian Veterinary Research Institute in 1989.
He moved to the United States in 1991 to pursue a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology from the University of Maryland, which he completed in 1996, followed by four years of postdoctoral research at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine.
He held faculty and administrative positions at Purdue University before joining Texas A&M in 2016.
His courses at the VMBS have included Veterinary Immunology, Infectious Diseases, Biomedical Microbiology, and Great Diseases Of The World.
Vemulapalli has also dedicated much of his career to research, with his top interests being the development of vaccines and diagnostic assays for infectious diseases.
Many of his research projects have involved brucellosis, a bacterial zoonotic disease that threatens livestock industries and human health, especially in developing countries. His research program has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the United States Department of Agriculture.
On the international level, his activities have included advising the Government of India’s Department of Biotechnology on their Network Project on Brucellosis; providing hands-on molecular diagnostics workshops to veterinarians in Kabul, Afghanistan; and serving as an expert consultant to the Animal Health Division of the International Atomic Energy Agency on irradiated brucellosis vaccines.
Dr. Albert Mulenga, VTPB professor and associate head for the department’s research and graduate studies, will serve as interim VTPB department head for one year, with the option for a second year, if needed, based on input from the VTPB faculty to the Office of the Dean.
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Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216
