Cornell University has welcomed a new leader to its top veterinary diagnostic center.
Dr. Shelley Mehlenbacher officially began her role Dec. 1 as executive director of the Animal Health Diagnostic Center (AHDC) and New York State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, located within Cornell’s College of Veterinary Medicine. She also joins the college’s leadership team as associate dean for diagnostic operations and government relations.
“Diagnostic centers sit right at the crossroads of science and service,” Mehlenbacher said. “Being able to make a tangible impact while tackling complex challenges is something I find really rewarding.”
Mehlenbacher succeeds Dr. François Elvinger, who served as director since 2015. Dean Lorin Warnick thanked Elvinger for his “excellent service” and expressed enthusiasm about Mehlenbacher joining the team.
She brings extensive experience in veterinary medicine, public health, and agricultural policy. Most recently, she served as area director for the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service at the U.S. Embassy in Brasília, Brazil, where she worked on agricultural issues with several South American nations.
Prior to that, she held leadership roles at the Vermont Agency of Agriculture and has worked in both regulatory and clinical veterinary settings since 2000.
Mehlenbacher said she plans to spend her first months listening and learning from the AHDC team: “I want to understand people’s work, their priorities, and their vision for where the center can go in the next five years.”
She holds degrees from SUNY Geneseo, the University of Tennessee, Iowa State University, and the University of Minnesota. She is also a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine and a certified foreign animal disease diagnostician.
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