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K-State Today

June 28, 2018

Veterinary graduate student selected as Seaboard American Royal scholar

Submitted by Gabriella Doebele

AshLee Lattner, doctoral student in veterinary biomedical studies at Kansas State University, was selected as a 2018 Seaboard American Royal scholar. Lattner is one of 12 scholars selected from across the country.

The Seaboard Royal Scholarship program is designed to provide opportunities for outstanding college students to advocate for leadership, the food and fiber industry, and the American Royal. Lattner, Manhattan, will receive a $2,500 scholarship award. Scholars will travel to Kansas City, Missouri, in September for the 119th American Royal and participate in tours, a PRCA Rodeo and other American Royal events.

"I am incredibly humbled to receive this opportunity to advocate for an industry that has informed my personal development, education and career," Lattner said. "Building on my agricultural economics and philosophy background, I am now studying beef industry sustainability in terms of system dynamics. More specifically, our team is exploring how production practices affect the interactions and tradeoffs between social, environmental and economic factors."

Lattner is a graduate research assistant at the Beef Cattle Institute, a part of the university's College of Veterinary Medicine. She works under Brad White, institute director, and Bob Larson, professor of clinical sciences. Her research focuses on value generation and supply chain management with an emphasis on sustainability. Her studies seek to further understand beef production terms of land use, ethics, business and economics.

"My animal welfare project is aimed at facilitating information flow throughout supply chains," Lattner said. "The goal of my environmental economics project is to establish market-based, sustainable production incentives. This scholarship greatly enhances my ability to perform thorough and applicable research by helping me participate in these educational experiences and engage with appropriate stakeholders for our projects."