Dr. Janver Krehbiel

American Veterinary Medical Association 2004

Dr. Janver Krehbiel, Senior Associate Dean for Administration and Associate Dean for Academic Programs, College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, was honored with a 2004 Alumni Recognition Award from the Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine and its Veterinary Medical Alumni Association. The award was presented during the K-State Alumni Reception held in conjunction with the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Annual Conference on July 25, 2004 at the Marriot in Philadelphia, Pa.

Born in Pretty Prairie, Kan. on April 17, 1936, Dr. Krehbiel attended Bethel College, in North Newton, Kansas for two years, before transferring to Kansas State University where he received his DVM degree in 1962. After graduation, Dr. Krehbiel worked in private practice in Mesa Arizona and in Al Cajon California. From 1964 to 1966 he served in the Veterinary Services in the United States Air Force as Base Veterinarian at Anderson Air Force Base, Guam. Subsequent to this tour of duty, Dr. Krehbiel accepted a position as an instructor in the department of small animal surgery and medicine at the College of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich. He was a clinical instructor for three years and spent one year in the Department of Pathology in the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at MSU. While working in pathology, he completed his Masters Degree and received an award from the National Institute of Health for a special postdoctoral fellowship to pursue his Ph.D. Degree.

After completing his Ph.D. in Veterinary Pathology, Dr. Krehbiel continued his academic career as an assistant professor in the Department of Pathology, working in the clinical pathology laboratory. He served as the director of the clinical pathology laboratory for approximately ten years and moved through the academic ranks to appointment as a full professor in 1980. In 1983, he was appointed Acting Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Undergraduate Instruction for professional and undergraduate education and in 1989, was appointed Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. He has served in that capacity since and in 1998 received the additional appointment to Senior Associate Dean for Administration and continues to fulfill the responsibilities of both positions.

Dr. Krehbiel’s positions as Associate Dean for Administration and Associate Dean for Academic Programs require him to be an advocate for both faculty and students. These dual responsibilities call for a delicate “balance in being sensitive to both faculty and student concerns,” Krehbiel said. “My ultimate responsibility is to maintain the high standards of the institution while assisting faculty prepare students for the needs of the profession.”

In today’s rapidly changing world, Dr. Krehbiel noted that it is not easy to anticipate the future demands society will place upon veterinary medicine, but it is a “paramount concern of the academic world to keep the educational program structured for graduates to successfully fill a variety of roles within the profession.”

Having grown up on a family farm in a small town in south-central Kansas, Dr. Krehbiel enjoyed and appreciated his animal agricultural background and initially planned to spend his career in food animal practice. However, after experiences both in small animal and mixed practice and service as a base veterinarian, he was presented with an opportunity to enter the academic realm of the profession where he has spent most of his professional career. As for his choice to enter academe, Dr. Krehbiel feels that many great teachers and mentors throughout his education influenced this decision and the challenge to follow their footsteps was highly attractive.

Dr. Krehbiel finds the scope and diversity of his experiences to have been extremely gratifying, as each has had different demands and revealed different aspects of the profession. He also notes that it has afforded him the opportunity to work with many wonderful people at both his own institution and other veterinary institutions, enriching the experience even more.

The K-State Alumni Recognition Award will be added to an extensive catalogue of Dr. Krehbiel’s accomplishments. Dr. Krehbiel is currently a member and diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists, and a member of the American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology, the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association. He has been a chairperson for the National Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, and has served as chairperson of the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Informatics Committee, the Association of American Veterinary College’s Academic Deans and the Examination Committee for the American College of Veterinary Pathologists. He has served as president of the American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology 1982-83, and the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association MSU - 1999.

Dr. Krehbiel was elected to the Council on Education in 2000 and will serve in that in capacity until 2006. He has conducted numerous site visits for accreditation of veterinary colleges and in addition, serves as the liaison member from the COE to the Committee on Veterinary Technology Education Activities, which accredits veterinary technology programs.

Dr. Krehbiel’s activities at MSU are equally as extensive as he has taught and continues to teach in numerous different courses. He has served on over 20 committees at the college and university level, acted as a student advisor, and has received funding for several research projects. Dr. Krehbiel has also been invited to lecture at numerous events in the US and abroad, and has authored or co-authored over 40 publications.

K-State College of Veterinary Medicine and its Veterinary Medical Alumni Association honor alumni who have been selected by their peers with this recognition at several major veterinary conferences annually. The K-State College of Veterinary Medicine and its alumni association host alumni receptions at seven veterinary conferences and meetings throughout the United States and Canada each year. This provides the opportunity to reach out and thank those who have made a difference.