Randall B. Terry Jr. Dean and Distinguished Professor in Comparative Medicine, North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine
UW Majors: Zoology, Veterinary Medicine
Having grown up in rural Wisconsin, surrounded by horses and dairy farms, Meurs recalls deciding at age seven that she wanted to become a veterinarian. In high school, she shadowed large-animal veterinarians and assumed she would return home to practice after college.
A summer research experience after her freshman year at UW–Madison challenged that assumption. Meurs worked with a veterinary cardiologist studying sudden death in boxer dogs and realized that, although clinical work offered the chance to treat individual patients, research had the potential to help many more.
“Wisconsin gave me the freedom to try new things,” she says. “There wasn’t really a downside to taking a risk.” That includes taking advantage of a variety of hands-on activities outside the classroom — from working with sheep through a student club to helping with a “dog jog” fundraiser.
After graduating from the UW School of Veterinary Medicine, Meurs completed a cardiology residency and her doctorate in cardiovascular genetics at Texas A&M University. Along the way, an internship at North Carolina State University sparked another interest: teaching. Working closely with veterinary students near her own age, she was an approachable mentor and found she enjoyed training young people and helping them build confidence. Meurs says these efforts are a source of pride that equals the contributions she’s made behind the bench.
“If you make a scientific discovery, other people will use that, and it will benefit more and more animals,” she says. “It’s the same with teaching: if you have a positive impact on students, that pays forward. The ripple effect for both of those is really meaningful.”
Those scientific discoveries have had far-reaching impact. Meurs is widely regarded for identifying key DNA changes responsible for inherited cardiomyopathies — diseases of the heart muscle — in dogs and cats. Her work has led to genetic tests that allow veterinarians and breeders to identify at-risk animals sooner, guide treatment decisions, and prevent future cases. Her findings have also shed light on similar heart conditions in people.
In parallel with her scientific contributions, Meurs has gone on to play a substantial leadership role in shaping veterinary education and research. She held faculty and administrative positions at Ohio State University and Washington State University before joining North Carolina State in 2011. There, she has helped increase research funding, expand graduate and doctoral programs, and launch new training opportunities, including an undergraduate research program and a combined doctor of veterinary medicine/master of public health degree. In 2022, she was named dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State.
It’s a role seven-year-old Kathryn might not have imagined. But advocating for faculty, strengthening research and training, and creating the conditions for others to succeed have supercharged her ripple effect in the field of animal health.