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Francis Welcome Future Dairy Practitioner Scholarship

Francis Welcome

The purpose of the Francis Welcome Memorial Scholarship is to support a superior 3rd year veterinary student that demonstrates the character, knowledge and potential to become an outstanding dairy veterinarian upon graduation. The scholarship provides a one time cash award, administered by the AABP Foundation, to use at their discretion to provide them with unique educational experiences to maximize their preparation for their future career.

The Francis Welcome Memorial Scholarship was created by the Welcome family to honor the memory of Dr. Francis (Frank) Welcome. A longtime AABP member, Frank graduated from Michigan State University in 1971 after which he relocated to upstate New York where he served as an associate with Cherry Valley Veterinary Associates for many years. During this time he continued to further his education and training becoming diplomates to both the American College of Theriogenologists as well as the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (Dairy). Frank spread his love of dairy medicine by mentoring numerous veterinary student externs, many of whom went on to long careers in dairy practice. Frank also showed a dedication to client education, mastitis prevention and herd health. In 2000 Frank transitioned to the second phase of his career, joining Cornell's Quality Milk Production Service (QMPS) as a senior extension veterinarian. During his time with QMPS Frank earned an MBA in agriculture from the University of Guelph. At QMPS Frank worked closely with area dairy farmers. He traveled extensively speaking to veterinarians and farmers around the world. Frank had a wealth of knowledge and experience from his many years in practice, which he shared with colleagues and students as a friend and mentor. Although he formally retired in 2018, Frank remained with QMPS on a part time basis. His kind, humble manner, a wonderful sense of humor and an encyclopedic memory led many to seek his advice. Frank made time for everyone and loved more than anything to talk about cows. Frank was an active AABP member and served on several committees. He was an AABP Honor Roll member and a donor to both the Amstutz Scholarship Fund and AABP Foundation.

Award

The award will consist of a one time cash scholarship of $2000. This award will be granted to two new recipients annually until such time as the endowment is exhausted.


Endowment

  1. An initial endowment to the AABP Foundation will be provided by the Welcome family with future endowments to be made at the family's discretion.
  2. A donation portal has been established via the AABP Foundation so that friends, colleagues and extended family members can donate directly to the endowment. This portal will be maintained for a minimum of 10 years after the initial endowment.

Applicant Criteria (who may apply):

  1. Must be a Student member of AABP.
  2. Be enrolled in a college/school of veterinary medicine accredited by the AVMA Council on Education.
  3. Have completed or are in the process of completing their third year (graduation year 2025) of the veterinary medical curriculum at the time of application
  4. Intend to engage in dairy practice and/or research after graduation.
  5. Special consideration will be given to applicants who:
    1. Have completed or are enrolled in the Cornell Summer Dairy Institute.
    2. Have competed or are completing student research projects in the areas of mastitis prevention and control or herd health.


Application and selection process:

  1. An electronic application will be made available on the AABP website.
  2. The application will include the following requirements
    1. Basic contact information
    2. GPA and Class rank (per other AABP sponsored scholarships)
    3. Biographical narrative
    4. Plans post graduation
    5. How do you plan to use the award
    6. Veterinary School Faculty Reference must be entered for each applicant. The deadline for submission of the application and supporting letter of sponsorship is May 30, 2025, 5 pm EST. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure the application and letter of sponsorship is completed before the deadline. Incomplete applications, including those without a sponsorship letter by the deadline, are disqualified.
  3. All applications will be reviewed by the AABP Student Activities Committee and Milk Quality and Udder Health Committee. The top three candidates will be selected and forwarded to the Welcome family. The Welcome family will choose the recipients from these finalists.
  4. The award winner will be announced at the annual AABP conference. The recipient does not need to be in attendance to receive the award but is encouraged to attend.

 

Student applicants are responsible for ensuring reference letters are uploaded before the listed deadline. If letters of reference are not electronically submitted by the deadline, the application is considered incomplete and will be discarded. Applicants can check the status of their applications and track the submission of required materials, by logging on to the AABP website, go to the Students Menu and selecting Scholarship/Grant Portal.