Emerging Leader

Every year the MVMA selects an Emerging Leader in Maine. Our Emerging Leaders frequently take on leadership positions in the association and the profession. They also join Maine's delegation at the AVMA Veterinary Leadership Conference and the Northeast Veterinary Medical Conference. 

MVMA members who graduated in the last 15 years are eligible to be the Emerging Leader. 

Apply to be Maine's Emerging Leader

The MVMA accepts applications for our Emerging Leader program each year in June. Interested applicants should be available to attend the NEVMA virtual meeting on September and the Veterinary Leadership Conference in Chicago in January. Emerging Leaders are also encouraged to attend MVMA Board meetings, which take place online or in Hallowell on the first Wednesday of the month in December, March, June, and the second Wednesday of the month in September.

Email the MVMA at [email protected] with your interest. Please answer the following questions in your email:

  • What motivates you to apply for a veterinary leadership training program?
  • In your experience to date, what leadership positions have you held?
  • What special qualities do you think you could provide to the leadership of a veterinary or any other organization?

Maine's 2023/24 Emerging Leader

Dr. Sarah Horn is originally from upstate New York, but fell in love with the state of Maine while attending Bowdoin College. She began her veterinary studies at Ross School of Veterinary Medicine and completed her clinical year at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine. Following graduation, she completed a one-year rotating internship in emergency and specialty medicine and then returned to Maine, where she worked as a general practitioner for several years. In 2021, she made the leap into her first industry role before moving into her current position as the Professional Service Veterinarian of New England for IDEXX Laboratories. In this role, she is able to support veterinary professionals and put her passion for medical education and progressive veterinary medicine to great use. Dr. Horn is serving as the Emerging Leader for the MVMA and participated in The Power of Ten program in 2023/2024. In her free time, she can be found in Bowdoinham, where she lives in an old farmhouse on the river with her husband, their son, and their Labrador retriever.

 

Maine's 2022/23 Emerging Leader

Dr. Lisa Bourazak received her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Illinois in 2012. She went on to a one-year rotating internship at the University of Georgia followed by a three-year residency in Anesthesia and Analgesia at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. She has worked in private practice as a veterinary anesthesiologist since finishing her residency. Dr. Bourazak landed in Maine in 2021 working at MVMC and Rarebreed Veterinary Partners. She lives in Southern Maine with her partner, 2 dogs and 3 cats and enjoys hiking, biking, and traveling.

 

 

Maine's 2021/22 Emerging Leader

Dr. Jessica Matulis grew up in Bethel, Maine.  She graduated from the University of Maine Orono in 2004.  She received her DVM Degree in 2008 from the Atlantic Veterinary College in Prince Edward Island, Canada.  Dr. Matulis has spent the first 10 years in mixed animal practice, and developed a passion for bovine and exotic animal medicine and surgery.  She currently works in a small animal clinic in Skowhegan, Maine, although she still works on the occasional large animal patient.  Her personal interests in the MVMA include animal welfare and student mentorship.  Dr. Matulis spends her free time with her husband, three children, dog, 2 cats, and 5 chickens.  Her extracurricular activities include running 5K obstacle course races, reading, and crafting.

 

Maine's 2019/2020 Emerging Leader

Dr. Casey Cole grew up in Saco, Maine and graduated from the University of Maine at Machias in 2010. He received his degree in veterinary medicine from the Royal Veterinary College in London in 2014. He has a passion for emergency medicine and currently works as a small animal emergency veterinarian in Southern Maine. He also serves on the Maine Animal Welfare Advisory Council. His professional interest on the MVMA board include animal welfare and supporting veterinarians throughout the state.  Dr. Cole lives in Southern Maine with his 2 dogs and 3 cats. He enjoys spending his free time cooking, hiking, or travelling.

 

 

 

 

Maine's 2018/2019 Emerging Leader

Dr. Jessica van Binsbergen received her veterinary medicine degree from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland in 2010 and bounced around a bit before landing in Maine. Following graduation she volunteered as a spay/neuter surgeon in Costa Rica for a few weeks. She then went on to work in a general practice and did relief work at a large shelter in the NYC area for 4 years. After that she did a year stint at a practice in her home town of East Hampton, NY. Next she went on to work for several months back in Edinburgh, Scotland before finally moving to Maine in 2015. For the past 3 years she’s been an associate at Casco Bay Vet Hospital in Portland and also works a few hours a week at the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland. This fall she did a spay/neuter trip to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota with some of the ARLGP team. In her limited spare time she’s typically training for a marathon or on an outdoor adventure with her rescue pup Henry.

 

Maine's 2017/2018 Emerging Leader

Dr. Joseph Sipe-Edelman received his DVM degree from Kansas State University in 2006, while also completing a master's degree in Pathology from the University of Kansas Medical Center. He is originally from Illinois, but has lived in various parts of the country, including Florida and Kansas. Dr. Sipe-Edelman moved to Maine in 2016, where he currently works as a small animal and exotic animal practitioner at Lucerne Veterinary Hospital. He lives in Orono with his husband, a professor at the University of Maine, and their two hounds, Ziggy and Darrowby. When not practicing veterinary medicine, Dr. Sipe-Edelman enjoys traveling, running, biking and the culinary arts.

  

 

Maine's 2016/2017 Emerging Leader

Dr. Samantha Hodgkins grew up in Gray, Maine and graduated from the University of Maine in 2006.  She then completed a master’s degree in immunology at the University of Vermont followed by her DVM at Cornell University in 2013.  She returned to Maine to practice small animal medicine at Pine Tree Veterinary Hospital in Augusta, Maine.  In 2016, she participated in MVMA’s inaugural Power of Ten program.  In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and young son, as well as their two dogs and one rabbit.