It’s always exciting in the anatomy laboratory to talk about why systems are put together the way they are, and teaching students is the most fun part of my day.
Department Head, Professor
When teaching veterinary students, I want to provide them with the tools they will need to succeed as veterinarians; I want to make them veterinarians and not veterinary anatomists.
I have a degree that is suited for a career in federal research or industry, but I elected to teach because it’s fun and it puts me in a position to make a difference in people’s lives and careers. As a teacher, I have the best job in the world. I teach because the difference we can make for real, live humans is palpable.
I teach anatomy but conduct research focused on toxicology. When teaching students, I want to provide them with the tools they will need to succeed. I’m not going to waste their time and brain-space with endless anatomic knowledge that will never be of use to them. Instead, I tell them I will teach what is clinically important and what they need to know to understand how the systems work. My goal is to give them the platform they need to think off of as they learn to move knowledge forward, which is the mandate of all major universities and research institutions.
My research pursuits are focused on toxicology, and I have primarily been a developmental immune system toxicologist. I help make discoveries that are critical to our understanding of diseases. In academia, opportunities for diverse research collaborations are constantly presenting themselves. I’ve done quite a bit of environmental toxicology work in non-mammals, including birds, snakes, alligators and other species. It’s exciting and fun and important.
I’m fascinated by new and rapidly growing molecular information showing that accidental assembly of the incredibly complex molecules of life is not only ridiculously impossible, but ludicrous to believe.
Learn more about Steve Holladay.