Phyllis Erdman will discuss the human-animal bond’s role in veterinary education as the distinguished lecturer of the 2024 Bustad Lecture at 5 p.m. Friday, March 22, in room 1002 of the Animal Disease Biotechnology Facility building on the Washington State University Pullman campus. The lecture can also be viewed virtually.
Erdman’s talk will examine the personal and philosophical challenges students encounter during veterinary school and offer educators, clinicians, and mental health professionals insight into how to alleviate these challenges and maintain student morale.
Erdman is a licensed mental health counselor, a professor of counseling, and the executive associate dean for academic affairs at WSU’s College of Education. She specializes in research in parent-child relationships and human-animal interaction.
The Bustad Lecture is an annual honor of late veterinarian and longtime WSU College of Veterinary Medicine dean Dr. Leo Bustad, known for his research on the human‑animal bond.
