Request for Application

The Charles and Sharron Capen Scholarship in Experimental Veterinary Pathology is made possible through the generosity of the late Drs. Charles and Sharron (Martin) Capen. Dr. Charles Capen was a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists and a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. He conducted ground-breaking research in veterinary endocrinology and significantly promoted the use of animal models to study human diseases. Dr. Sharron Capen received her MS and DVM from The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She was the first female faculty member of that college and its first female full professor. Dr. Capen practiced small animal medicine with an interest in dermatology and avian medicine. This scholarship continues the Capen legacy.

The 2026 application deadline is March 1, 2026.

The 2025 recipient is Dr. Laine Feller of Johns Hopkins University.

The 2024 recipient is Dr. Nathan Hoggard of Ohio University.

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Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must:

• Have graduated in the upper 20% of their class in veterinary medical college
• Have completed the first two years of a residency in anatomic pathology by the time the scholarship begins
• Indicate dedication to complete the ACVP Certifying Examination process
• Be a PhD graduate student who is an active member of a laboratory
• Be pursuing research training in a mentored environment working on a hypothesis-driven research topic that investigates mechanisms relating to endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic diseases of either animals or humans using state-of-the-art laboratory techniques.

This scholarship is primarily designed to support a stipend covering the last two years of intensive research training in a doctoral program prior to assuming a full-time position in academia, the pharmaceutical or chemical industry, or at a governmental laboratory. The stipend is fully competitive with programs administered by appropriate federal agencies (e.g., National Institutes of Health, United States Department of Agriculture, among others) or other private foundations that support doctoral-level research and advanced professional education in experimental veterinary pathology.

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Funding

The scholarship will provide for two years of funding for a PhD graduate student. Stipends will be provided according to the NIH National Research Service Award (NRSA) experience-based scale shown in Table 1. The applicant/mentor/training institution must agree to provide supplemental funding for each year of the scholarship, including (i) medical benefits, (ii) applicable tuition/fees, (iii) travel, (iv) research, and (v) educational supplies. It is acceptable for applicants/training institutions to supplement this scholarship with funds from federal, state, private, and other sources so long as permissible according to stipulations for use of those funds.

Travel funds should be provided to attend ACVP annual meetings and to present research results. Recipients are also eligible to apply for graduate student travel awards from ACVP to attend the annual meeting.

Funding will be renewed on an annual basis, subject to satisfactory progress as evidenced by annual progress reports submitted by the recipient and reviewed by the ACVP Grants and Endowments Committee. The ACVP Board of Directors has the sole right to revoke a scholarship.

If the recipient leaves the training program for any reason prior to completion, it is the responsibility of both the recipient and the academic mentor to contact the ACVP Grants and Endowments Committee Chair within 30 days of departure to develop a plan with the fiscal officer of the institution for disposition of the position and funding.

Table 1. Stipend levels (FY 2025 NRSA experience-based scale, accessed 15 Jan 2025).

Career Level	Years of Experience	Stipend for FY 2024	Monthly Stipend
Postdoctoral	0	$61,008	$5,084
Postdoctoral	1	$61,428	$5,119
Postdoctoral	2	$61,884	$5,157
Postdoctoral	3	$64,356	$5,363
Postdoctoral	4	$66,492	$5,541
Postdoctoral	5	$68,964	$5,747
Postdoctoral	6	$71,532	$5,961
Postdoctoral	7 or More	$74,088	$6,174

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Application Submission, Review and Award Process

Applications may be submitted from any institution that trains veterinary anatomic pathologists to be ACVP Board-eligible as one of its primary functions. Applications must be submitted jointly by the PhD applicant and their research mentor through the ACVP website. Citizenship requirements of applicants will be commensurate with the requirements of the training institution. ACVP urges that institutions encourage applications from applicants with diversified personal and professional backgrounds.

The information requested in this application will be evaluated and scored by the ACVP Grants and Endowments Committee (excluding members with conflicts of interest) according to the system shown in Table 2.

Table 2. Criteria and Point Value System for Evaluation of Applications.

Item	Point Value (total=100)
Relevance of the proposed research project to endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic pathology	20
Credentials of PhD applicant (e.g., CV, career goals, transcripts, and letters of recommendation)	20
Credentials of research mentor (e.g., CV, research support and environment, publication record)	20
Collaboration with additional graduate research faculty	10
Other factors that particularly enhance the training environment	10
Interactions with other training environments	10
Current PhD/post-docs for whom the researcher serves as primary mentor	5
PhD/post-docs who matriculated through the mentor’s laboratory in past 5 years	5

Selection criteria will be based on the qualifications of the applicant and mentor, and quality of the research project and environment. A recipient will be selected based on academic qualifications, potential for a successful career in veterinary pathology, and evidence of a vested interest in endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic disease pathogenesis. Mentors must provide evidence of research success, expertise in the area of the research, and a history of research mentoring. The research environment should provide the necessary equipment as well as the diversity of expertise and resources for optimal research training. The research project must be hypothesis-driven and aimed to advance knowledge in some area of endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic disease. In cases in which applications from two or more institutions are judged to be of equal merit, institutions without a similar actively funded scholarship position, or that have not been previously awarded such a position, will be given special consideration. Once the training institution is selected, a written agreement will be executed between ACVP and the training institution specifying terms of the scholarship.

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Information to be Included in the Application

All applications should include a description of the items listed below. The relative point value assigned to each of these items is shown in Table 2.

Research Proposal. The research proposal (maximum of 5 pages not including references) should include (i) a statement of the problem and justification for the research, (ii) specific aims and hypothesis, (iii) proposed methods, (iv) potential pitfalls, (v) potential impact of results on the understanding of endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic disease pathogenesis, and (vi) references.

Credentials of the applicant. The applicant must submit a curriculum vitae and statement of career goals, transcripts from veterinary school and all post-veterinary school education, letters of recommendation from three individuals familiar with applicant’s aptitude in endocrine, metabolic, or dermatologic diseases. Additionally, a list of the names, titles (academic rank), and credentials (academic degrees, specialty board certifications) of faculty who are actively involved in the applicant’s training and/or who serve on the applicant’s PhD graduate committee must be included. Indicate how faculty are involved in research training (e.g., research laboratory collaborations, participation on graduate committees, graduate course instruction) and summarize other types of interactions with the applicant.

Credentials of the Mentor. The mentor of the applicant must submit a curriculum vitae and a letter providing evidence of expertise in the research area of the applicant. The curriculum vitae and/or letter should include a history of research mentoring (including names of past and current mentees), a description of the mentoring environment (including planned contact with the applicant), sources of funding for the research project, available laboratory facilities, access to diverse expertise through other researchers, options for seminars, and confirmation of travel support for the applicant to present their research findings.

Other Factors that Particularly Enhance the Training Environment. Applicants should describe any other elements that do not fall within the items provided in the application that particularly enhance the training environment. For example, applicants may wish to describe particularly strong interactions with medical schools, the biopharmaceutical industry or government agencies, or special efforts to ensure trainees are well mentored.

Interactions with Other Training Environments. Given the complexity of issues with which modern veterinary pathologists must deal, it is difficult for all programs to provide adequate training in all the necessary disciplines within their own program. Applicants should describe interactions with other environments that enhance training beyond that which is available within their own department.

Additional Information to be Submitted (regarding program support)

The research mentor or department/program head must submit a letter confirming the amount of funds that will be provided for the applicant each year, including (i) medical benefits, (ii) tuition/fees, and (iii) travel.

Please feel free to email the ACVP Grants and Endowments Committee Chair if more information or clarification is needed.