Annual Winter Conference
The Scientists Center for Animal Welfare (SCAW) serves as an objective, credible source of information for the research community, the media, and the general public. This is done through our conferences, workshops and publications. SCAW two-day conferences will provide key findings and advances in research animal welfare, explore policy and management issues related to IACUCs and develop awareness of humane care and use of agricultural animals in research.
SCAW has developed a Student Scholarship Fund. If you are a full time student and would like to attend any one of SCAW’s Workshops or Conferences click here for more information.
SCAW conferences and workshops will be reviewed and approved by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB) RACE program and will meet the requirements for continuing education credit for Veterinarians and Veterinary Technicians. Please contact the AAVSB RACE program at [email protected] should you have any comments/concerns regarding SCAW's program’s validity or relevancy to the veterinary profession. SCAW's AAVSB/RACE provider #293. RACE, PRIM&R and AALAS accepts these continuing education credits.
SCAW encourages local institutions and others to co-sponsor our conferences and workshops. Please contact the SCAW office if you are interested in sponsoring a conference or workshop.
Attendance at these conferences is limited to experienced IACUC members and administrators, principal investigators, attending veterinarians, regulatory personnel and laboratory animal care staff.
Please see the links for meeting registration, program, location and accommodation information. Registration fees do not cover the expenses of travel and accommodations.
Special Needs:
Individuals requiring special accommodations should contact the SCAW office prior to the meeting. SCAW is in compliance with the Rehabilitation Act of 1972 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Future Conferences:
December 8-9, 2025, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
December 7-8, 2026, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
December 6-7, 2027, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
December 4-5, 2028, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
December 3-4, 2029, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
December 9-10, 2030, Menger Hotel, San Antonio, TX
SCAW Annual Winter Conference
December 8-9, 2025
Sponsored with UTHSC-SA; CITI Program; Tech Software, Inc; and Merck, Inc.
December 8, 2025
Chair: Randall J. Nelson, PhD
Time |
Event |
7:30 |
Light Breakfast and Exhibits |
8:30 |
Welcome and Introduction Randall J. Nelson, PhD |
8:45 |
Harry C. Rowsell Awardee Rowsell Award Presenter: Ernest D. Prentice, PhD Awardee: Jerald Silverman, DVM, DACLAM, MS Accepting the Award: Dr.’s Lisa Barber and Sreekant Murthy |
9:30 |
Should Ethics be Included in the Next Guide? The Pros, the Cons, and How IACUCs, Staff, Investigators, and Facility Veterinarians Should Approach This Question Jerrold Tannenbaum, JD |
10:15 |
Break and Exhibits |
10:45 |
Life Inside the Beltway Ballroom Matthew R. Bailey, BA |
11:30 |
Life Outside the Beltway Ballroom Susan B. Harper, DVM, MS, DACLAM Sally Thompson-Iritani, DVM, PhD, CPIC, CCFP, CHABP |
12:30 |
Lunch |
1:30 |
Break-Out Sessions Ballroom A Should Ethics be Included in the Next Guide? The Pros, the Cons, and How IACUCs, Staff, Investigators, and Facility Veterinarians Should Approach This Question Jerrold Tannenbaum, JD Ballroom B Contingency Plans and Planning Susan B. Harper, DVM, MS, DACLAM Ballroom C Q&A With AAALAC International Debra L. Hickman, DVM, DACLAM, DACAW |
2:30 |
Ballroom A Life Inside the Beltway Matthew R. Bailey, BA Ballroom B Breathing New Life Into Your IACUC Justin A. McNulty, MLAS, CPIA, RLATG Gregory R. Reinhard, DVM, MBA, DACLAM, CPIA Ballroom C The IACUC, Ethics and Future Change Margaret S. Landi, VMD, MS, DACLAM, MBioethics |
3:30 |
Break and Exhibits |
4:00 |
Break-Out Sessions Ballroom A Open Forum: Q&A OLAW Representative USDA/APHIS/AC Representative Ballroom B Outside The Beltway Susan B. Harper, DVM, MS, DACLAM Sally Thompson-Iritani, DVM, PhD, CPIC, CCFP, CHABP Ballroom C What Can Be Learned From A Review and Analysis of Citations of IACUC Activities B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW |
5:00 |
Conclusion of First Day |
5:30 |
Reception All attendees and exhibitors are invited to attend the reception sponsored by CITI Program and Tech Software |
Sponsored with UTHSC-SA; CITI Program; Tech Software, Inc; and Merck, Inc.
December 9, 2025
Chair: B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW
Time |
Event |
7:30 |
Light Breakfast and Exhibits |
8:15 |
Introduction B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW |
8:30 |
Harry C. Rowsell Awardee Rowsell Award Presenter: Ernest D. Prentice, PhD Awardee: William J. White, VMD, MS, DACLAM, Dipl. ECLAM |
9:15 |
Defining A Culture of Care Elizabeth A. Nunamaker, PhD, DVM, DACLAM, DACAW |
10:00 |
Break and Exhibits |
10:30 |
The IACUC's Role in Enrichment Programs Kristine Coleman, PhD |
11:15 |
Mock IACUC TBA |
12:00 |
Lunch |
1:00 |
Ballroom A Culture of Care Elizabeth A. Nunamaker, PhD, DVM, DACLAM, DACAW Ballroom B IACUC and Research Safety/Risk Assessment Susan B. Harper, DVM, MS, DACLAM Ballroom C Lessons Learned When an Institution is Targeted Moderator: B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW John F. Bradfield, DVM, PhD, DACLAM Kristine Coleman, PhD |
2:00 |
Break-Out Sessions Ballroom A The IACUC's Role in Enrichment Programs Kristine Coleman, PhD Ballroom B Embracing the 3 R’s: Going Beyond a Checkbox Elizabeth A. Nunamaker, PhD, DVM, DACLAM, DACAW Sally Thompson-Iritani, DVM, PhD, CPIC, CCFP, CHABP Ballroom C Small Group Discussion of IACUC Training: IACUC Judgment and Decision-making: Striking the Balance Continued (Registration limited to 30 participants. Please email [email protected] to become a registrant. You will receive a return email confirming that you are a participant. If a minimum number of 10 attendees aren't registered, the session will be canceled.) B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW John F. Bradfield, DVM, PhD, DACLAM |
3:00 |
Break and Exhibits |
3:30 |
Break-Out Sessions Case Studies: Ballroom A&B Ernest D. Prentice, PhD Randall J. Nelson, PhD OLAW Representative USDA/APHIS/AC Representative Ballroom C Small Group Discussion of IACUC Training: IACUC Judgment and Decision-making: Striking the Balance Continued (Continued from 2pm, limited to 30 participants) B. Taylor Bennett, DVM, PhD, DACLAM, DACAW John F. Bradfield, DVM, PhD, DACLAM |
4:30 |
Conclusion of Conference |
Menger Hotel
Menger Hotel
404 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205
210-223-4361
www.mengerhotel.com
A block of rooms has been reserved for December 6-11, 2025, for conference attendees at the Menger Hotel. The reduced rate of $169.00 per night single/double plus tax is being offered. Click here to go directly to the reservation link, the deadline for hotel reservations is November 14, 2025.
The closest airport to the Menger Hotel is the San Antonio International Airport and is a 25 minute ride to the hotel available through Uber, Lyft or Taxi service.
Please remember temperatures in the conference rooms tend to get chilly so pack a lightweight sweater or jacket.
404 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205
210-223-4361
www.mengerhotel.com
A block of rooms has been reserved for December 6-11, 2025, for conference attendees at the Menger Hotel. The reduced rate of $169.00 per night single/double plus tax is being offered. Click here to go directly to the reservation link, the deadline for hotel reservations is November 14, 2025.
The closest airport to the Menger Hotel is the San Antonio International Airport and is a 25 minute ride to the hotel available through Uber, Lyft or Taxi service.
Please remember temperatures in the conference rooms tend to get chilly so pack a lightweight sweater or jacket.
About San Antonio
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011, it was estimated to be the 24th largest metropolitan area in the U.S. with a regional population of 2.2 million according to U.S. Census Bureau figures tabulated by Business First. San Antonio has characteristics of other western urban centers in which there are sparsely populated areas and a low density rate outside of the city. It was the fourth-fastest growing large city in the nation from 2000 to 2006 and the fifth-fastest-growing from 2007 to 2008. The San Antonio–New Braunfels metropolitan area has a population of over 2.14 million based on the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the 25th-largest metropolitan area in the United States and third-largest in Texas.
The city was named for San Antonio de Padua, whose feast day is on June 13, when a Spanish expedition stopped in the area in 1691. Famous for Spanish missions, the Alamo, the River Walk, the Tower of the Americas, the Alamo Bowl, Marriage Island and host to SeaWorld and Six Flags Fiesta Texas theme parks, the city is visited by approximately 26 million tourists per year according to the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau. The city is home to the four-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs and the annual San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, one of the largest in the country.
San Antonio has a strong military presence—it is home to Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base, Randolph Air Force Base, and Brooks City-Base, with Camp Bullis and Camp Stanley outside the city. Kelly Air Force Base operated out of San Antonio until 2001, when the airfield was transferred over to Lackland AFB and the remaining portions of the base became Port San Antonio, an industrial/business park. San Antonio is home to five Fortune 500 companies and to the South Texas Medical Center, the only medical research and care provider in the South Texas region.
The city was named for San Antonio de Padua, whose feast day is on June 13, when a Spanish expedition stopped in the area in 1691. Famous for Spanish missions, the Alamo, the River Walk, the Tower of the Americas, the Alamo Bowl, Marriage Island and host to SeaWorld and Six Flags Fiesta Texas theme parks, the city is visited by approximately 26 million tourists per year according to the San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau. The city is home to the four-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs and the annual San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo, one of the largest in the country.
San Antonio has a strong military presence—it is home to Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base, Randolph Air Force Base, and Brooks City-Base, with Camp Bullis and Camp Stanley outside the city. Kelly Air Force Base operated out of San Antonio until 2001, when the airfield was transferred over to Lackland AFB and the remaining portions of the base became Port San Antonio, an industrial/business park. San Antonio is home to five Fortune 500 companies and to the South Texas Medical Center, the only medical research and care provider in the South Texas region.