Three UF veterinary students win financial-aid awards

Gainesville, Fla.

-- Three students at the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine received financial awards from Gulfstream Park to support their studies in equine medicine.

The Gulfstream Barbaro Awards were established three years ago after the death of 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, providing $12,500 plus professional mentoring through the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) to two senior UF students pursuing careers in equine medicine and surgery. Gulfstream also provides a $5,000 Barbaro Research Award to a UF veterinary graduate student.

This year's DVM student awards went to Megan Lamb and Erica Rosen, and the graduate-student award to Astrid Grosche.

Lamb, a graduate of Colgate University, has been a member of UF's student chapter of AAEP and the UF colic team. After graduation, she plans to work toward board certification in equine surgery or medicine. Rosen, a Cornell University graduate, plans a career in sport horse medicine focusing on lameness, diagnostic imaging and surgery. Grosche, a board-certified internist in large-animal medicine, received her veterinary degree from Leipzig University in Germany. Her current research is on the role of inflammation in mucosal damage and restitution of the equine colon during ischemia and reperfusion.

Gulfstream Park, in Hallandale, Fla., is one of a group of racetracks owned by Magna Entertainment Corp.