Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory promotes four leaders
Morris named associate director; three named assistant agency directors
The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, promoted four individuals to new leadership roles beginning Oct. 1.
Morris named associate director
Stacy Morris, formerly an assistant director, was promoted to the agency’s associate director.
Morris will provide executive leadership for operational aspects, including core business strategies, executive operations, human resources, personnel development, client services, business intelligence, marketing and communications, outreach and other agency-wide initiatives.
“Stacy has served the agency with distinction for over 12 years,” said Amy Swinford, DVM, TVMDL interim director. “She is a true visionary and has worked tirelessly to ensure that TVMDL’s staff, processes and services are some of the best and most efficient in the nation. She’s an exceptional leader, and I am confident she will continue to embody the same passion and fortitude in her new role that she has exuded during her tenure with the agency.”
Morris is a 1999 graduate of Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural development and a master’s degree in natural resources development. She also holds a Lean Office and Service Certificate from the University of Michigan.
In 2003, Morris joined the V.G. Young Institute of County Government, part of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. While working there, Morris received both the national and state Epsilon Sigma Phi award for early career service. Following her time at the Institute, she began a dual role as chief of staff for both the Institute for Infectious Animal Diseases, a unit of Texas A&M AgriLife and TVMDL.
Morris was recognized as a Regents Fellow by the Texas A&M University System in 2016, earned the Texas A&M AgriLife Vice Chancellor’s Award in Excellence in 2014 and the TVMDL Director’s Excellence Award in 2010.
Three promoted to assistant director
Three individuals, Julie Piccione, DVM, DACVP; Gabriel Gomez, DVM, Ph.D., DACVP; and Kiril Dimitrov, DVM, Ph.D., were promoted to new roles as assistant agency directors.
— Piccione has served as TVMDL’s clinical pathology section head since 2015. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Florida and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Florida. She completed a veterinary clinical pathology residency at Texas A&M in addition to earning a master’s degree. She is also a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists.
During her tenure at TVMDL, Piccione has elevated the agency’s commitment to accurate and timely diagnostic testing. She was also integral in developing one of TVMDL’s most popular services, digital cytology. As assistant agency director for clinical pathology, Piccione will oversee the agency’s clinical pathology, parasitology and endocrinology testing services.
— Gomez has been a part of TVMDL’s anatomic pathology section since 2013. Starting as a pathologist, he was promoted to assistant section head in 2015 and section head in 2020. Gomez earned two bachelor’s degrees and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Oklahoma State University. He completed his residency and earned a doctorate from Texas A&M. He is also a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathologists.
Since becoming section head, Gomez has streamlined the TVMDL’s anatomic pathology services. Under his leadership, the section has added several specially trained pathologists, furthering TVMDL’s ability to evaluate complex cases. As the assistant agency director for pathology, Gomez will oversee the agency’s histopathology and necropsy sections.
— Dimitrov joined TVMDL’s laboratory in Canyon in 2019 as the virology and molecular diagnostics section head. In 2020, he moved to the College Station lab to begin his role as the virology section head. Prior to joining TVMDL, Dimitrov served as a visiting scholar at the U.S. National Poultry Research Center of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Athens, Georgia. He also served as the laboratory director at the Regional Research and Diagnostic Laboratory for Newcastle Disease and Avian Influenza in Asakovo, Bulgaria.
Since joining TVMDL, Dimitrov has been instrumental in enhancing the agency’s research component and was actively involved in establishing TVMDL’s historic COVID-19 testing partnerships. In his new role, Dimitrov will serve as the assistant agency director for microbiology and research and oversee TVMDL’s bacteriology, molecular diagnostics, serology and virology sections in addition to the agency’s research and development efforts.
For more information on TVMDL, visit https://tvmdl.tamu.edu.
