AAVMP at Cornell
📍 Ithaca, NYThe Association of Asian Veterinary Medical Professionals at Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine is the first AAVMP student chapter and seeks to inspire, support, and increase the voice and visibility of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in the veterinary profession.
AAPI Heritage Month Community Feature
Ashley Yao is a student in the Class of 2023, and a dedicated advocate for DEI initiatives at Cornell CVM and beyond. This AAPIHM, to celebrate her contributions to the community we wanted to share with you a little bit more about Ashley! Read on to learn more about her inspirations and advice, and check out our Instagram @aavmpatcornell to check out other community features!
What inspired you to start your DEI work?
I'm not sure I can pinpoint an exact moment. I took an intro sociology class in undergrad that really provoked my thinking about racial justice and gave me the foundation to start thinking about what the terms diversity and equity really mean. From then, it has been very organic - I had a lot of discussions with friends and professors during the fall of 2016 when there was so much anti-Black and anti-Muslim sentiment following the election of Trump. The Black Lives Matter movement and its continued push for progress in 2020 allowed me to join a discussion/activism group of Asian and Asian Americans loosely based in the Washington, D.C. area. I've really benefited from the resources they've shared. All I know is that for me there's always more to learn and grow in this space.What is one accomplishment in this space that you're really proud of?
Being involved in VOICE (Veterinarians as One Inclusive Community for Empowerment) both locally and at the national level has been something I am really proud of. I've had a hand in planning events from a panel featuring Cornell clinicians and professors talking about the biases and discrimination they've faced in their profession all the way to a month-long wellness challenge for busy veterinary students. It's been amazing to be connected with Cornell BIPOC alumni and VOICE alumni through various channels and see what they're doing and see how much has changed since they were in vet school.What is one change you would like to see in the future of vet med?
Although we've come a long way, I still think there's room to improve in terms of equity and inclusion. I would love to see veterinary schools and their curricula be at the forefront in prioritizing inclusion. What good is recruiting under-represented minority students if they spend many years in vet school feeling not welcome or even discriminated against? We have to start thinking about the environment and future we're ushering the next generation into. I think we can think BIG and also think about the most efficient ways to implement changes. It is of course, not easy, but we can also recruit the help of those who are trained and are familiar with this work to help us get there.What is one resource / plug that you think people should check out to learn more about DEI?
Generally - I would recommend just reading, reading, reading, and reading some more! bell hooks, Baldwin, etc. There are also so many online workshops and resources where you can learn about bias intervention (Hollaback!), decolonization of your spaces (AAJIL), and giving. I'd also recommend checking out local mutual aid and other ways to volunteer and give back. For veterinary medicine specifically, I'd suggest looking into events held by MCVMA. I thought their first national conference held last November had a lot of great content. Pawsibilities is a great resource for those looking for mentorship or training on mentorship.If you were a tree, what tree would you be and why?
If I were to be a tree I'd be a crab apple tree - these have been blooming recently and they smell amazing!! The good thing is I don't have spring allergies - I wish these spring smells could last forever.