Dr. Jacey Cerda highlights AVMA advocacy career pathways

A new My Veterinary Life podcast episode spotlights Dr. Jacey Cerda’s path from veterinary student to AVMA Government Relations Extern and beyond, framing advocacy as a practical career lane rather than a side interest. Cerda brings an unusually interdisciplinary résumé to that conversation: she is a veterinarian, attorney, public health-trained professional, Fulbright scholar, and Colorado State University postdoctoral researcher focused on biodiversity conservation, wildlife health, and disaster response. (fulbright.org.au)

The episode also lands within a broader AVMA content push around organized veterinary medicine. Other recent My Veterinary Life episodes have highlighted early-career veterinarians finding leadership opportunities through national, state, and allied veterinary organizations, suggesting AVMA is deliberately trying to demystify participation in advocacy and association work for younger members. AVMA’s own career resources similarly point students and rising professionals toward externships, mentoring, volunteer leadership, and even congressional fellowships as viable extensions of a veterinary degree. (myvetlife.avma.org)

Cerda’s background helps explain why her story carries weight. Public profiles show she trained in wildlife biology at Colorado State University, later practiced law, then earned her DVM and returned to CSU for postdoctoral work. In 2024-2025, she held a Fulbright award tied to research in Australia on biodiversity protection and wildlife emergency response during disasters, including lessons from the 2019-2020 Black Summer bushfires. Federation University said her work is aimed at understanding how cross-disciplinary teams can better protect wildlife and ecosystems during fire events, while Fulbright materials describe her project as developing frameworks and training programs for disaster preparedness and response. (fulbright.org.au)

That matters because the AVMA Government Relations Externship has long been designed to expose veterinary students to how federal policy is made and how the profession’s legislative agenda is advanced in Washington. Historical AVMA coverage shows the program placed students in the Governmental Relations Division for hands-on exposure to federal advocacy, and AVMA later restored dedicated funding for stipends to support participation. In other words, Cerda’s story is part of a longer institutional effort to build a pipeline of veterinarians who understand lawmaking, regulation, and coalition-building. (avma.org)

Industry reaction here is less about a single policy announcement and more about the profession’s continuing need for advocacy talent. AVMA has recently emphasized federal policy priorities including the Rural Veterinary Workforce Act, saying the legislation would expand the impact of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program and remove federal taxation on those awards. The association noted that USDA designated 243 rural veterinary shortage areas in 46 states in 2025, the highest number on record, underscoring why policy engagement is not abstract for practitioners. Cerda’s example gives a human face to that message: veterinarians with policy experience can help shape the rules, funding streams, and emergency frameworks that affect practice on the ground. (avma.org)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, especially students, interns, residents, and early-career associates, this story reinforces that regulation and advocacy are career multipliers. A veterinarian who understands legislative process, agency priorities, and organized medicine can contribute not only in exam rooms, but also in workforce policy, disaster planning, wildlife health, telemedicine, public health, and access-to-care debates. That’s increasingly relevant as practices navigate controlled substance rules, accreditation requirements, rural shortages, and evolving state and federal policy pressures. AVMA’s messaging suggests it wants more members to see advocacy as part of professional responsibility, not just association politics. (ebusiness.avma.org)

Cerda’s interdisciplinary career may be especially resonant because it connects several pressures now shaping the profession: workforce gaps, interest in nontraditional careers, One Health, and disaster readiness. Her work in biodiversity conservation and emergency response shows how veterinary expertise can travel across sectors, while her legal training highlights the value of being able to translate science for policymakers and institutions. For practices and veterinary schools, that’s a reminder that advocacy exposure can build skills useful far beyond formal government jobs. (jaceycerda.com)

What to watch: The next signal will be whether AVMA expands visibility, funding, or recruitment around externships, fellowships, and advocacy pathways as it continues pushing federal priorities and trying to bring more early-career veterinarians into organized medicine. (myvetlife.avma.org)