Rebecca Latham

Community-Academic Scholar:   Rebecca Latham (she/her)

Project: Rebecca worked with Professor Amy Fischer and the Companion Animal Resource and Education (CARE) Center to clarify and strengthen the network of agencies providing pet retention services, in order to keep more families together. Learn more about the project. 

Mentor reflection: "Rebecca was fantastic to work with," said Sarah Scott, CARE Center Board of Directors President. "She is a self-starter and did a lot on her own to carry the project forward, reaching out to community help groups in unique ways to get responses from them. She created a great survey that we will use moving forward to find out the needs of pet families."

Student reflection: "The most meaningful part of this experience was being able to connect with the Champaign County community. It was such an amazing experience to talk with community agency leaders about their love for their pets. I loved learning about how much others value animals in the community." 

How did participating in this program help you toward your goals?
Participating in this program helped me toward my goals mainly through experience and connections. Before being accepted into this program, I did not have a lot of experience with community-engaged research as I mainly just worked with animals and at a lab bench. This new experience allowed me to better understand and sympathize with community members and people in general. This program also connected me with so many agencies in the county that can help me in the future. As a Animal Sciences major, I hope to become a small animal veterinarian one day. Many of the agencies that I have communicated with are focused on veterinary medicine, providing animal assistance, or helping families that own pets in general. These connections will help me as I continue my education and career in animal care. 

What advice would you give to future scholars or to those who are interested in applying for the program?
My main piece of advice to future scholars or to those who are interested in applying for the program is to just do it. Even if you have any doubts about applying, just apply. This program is such an amazing opportunity that is unique from many other opportunities you will see on campus, so I think that applying is one of the best decisions I could have made for this summer. 

What was the most meaningful part of this experience?
The most meaningful part of this experience was being able to connect with the Champaign County community. Sometimes college students can be isolated from the communities surrounding the campus, so I feel that this program helped me learn more about the surrounding communities especially regarding their pets. It was such an amazing experience to talk with community agency leaders about their love for their pets and their clients’ love for their pets. I loved learning about how much others value animals in the community.