Vet Tech Club Planned

By Angelique D’Alessandro
Assistant Online Editor

With the recent announcement of the new veterinary technology program coming to Post, reported in the Pioneer on Jan. 24 students and faculty can expect to see a new vet tech club on campus in September 2018. The club will be a great way for vet tech students to connect to other members of the Post community, through service-oriented activities, Dr. Robin Sturtz, director of the new vet tech program, said.

“Vet tech students tend to be very compassionate and service-oriented,” Sturtz said. “Many of our projects will be aimed at helping local animal shelters.” In addition to being director of the vet tech program, Sturtz will advise the club. Sturtz plans to have the club conduct collection drives for local animal shelters, for the Post community to donate “towels, blankets, pet food, and toys.” For the students involved in the club, Sturtz said the experience “can show them what shelters are like and what they need, and can help them provide needed services.”

The club will also hold fundraisers for the ASPCA, as well as educational events open to all students on campus, Sturtz said. While Sturtz worked at LaGuardia Community College, the school’s vet tech club sponsored a speaker who discussed domestic violence and animal abuse. “After the event, students from all majors were asking themselves ‘what can I do to help?’ And several of those students went on to volunteer in that field.”

Sturtz hopes that the club will attract students from all majors, as it is not limited to only students involved in veterinary technology. “All students with an interest in animals will be able to join,” she said. She also hopes the club will be a large part of campus life, with plans for on-campus events “giving club members the opportunity to socialize with other students- to get together, have fun, eat, and talk about important topics outside of the classroom.”

Although the club has not yet come to campus, students are already excited about the opportunity to get involved. Julianna Labita, a nutrition major, said she would like to see the club on campus. “I would love to be hands-on with animals. There aren’t many opportunities to do that outside of clubs like this,” she said. “It’s great to be able to help in a hands-on way.”

Ashley Komornik, a freshman radiology major who plans on attending veterinary school after college, said her past experience in the field makes her excited for the club’s potential. “I work at a cat shelter, and I have to give the animals shots and medication, so I am used to it,” she said. “It’s a good field to go into if you love animals. When you see that the animals feel better, you have such a good feeling.”

For Sturtz, that “good feeling” is an integral part of veterinary technology, and a main goal of the club. “With [the club], we plan to do as much good as we can,” she said.