Dr. Carl Osborne served as a professor at University of Minnesota in the College of Veterinary Medicine beginning in 1964. He simultaneously pursued a doctorate, researching the urinary tract, and completed his degree in 1970. Dr. Osborne held a joint appointment with the Department of Pediatrics in the 1970s, working with the pediatric nephrology division. During his time at the University, Dr. Osborne has held several leadership positions, including Chair of Small Animal Clinical Sciences Department from 1976 to 1984 and Chair of the Companion Animals Department. He began the Minnesota Urolith Center in 1984, which continues to research the prevention of and cures for diseases of the urinary system in companion animals. Dr. Osborne has also earned many teaching and research awards over the course of his career, including the Distinguished Teacher Award, and continues to serve on the University’s faculty.
Interview Abstract
Dr. Carl Osborne begins with his upbringing, educational background, and childhood relationships with animals. He earned his DVM at Purdue University and took a tenure-track position at the University of Minnesota while he pursued his Ph.D. with a research focus in the urinary tract. He discusses his early years in the College of Veterinary Medicine, including W. T. S. Thorp’s tenure as dean. He also recounts the relationship of the department to the state legislature in working with large animals and the political influence of the rural population of the state. He describes the potential for retrenchment of the Vet School that occurred in 1988. In reflecting on his time as a researcher, clinician, and teacher, Dr. Osborne shares his philosophies on life, teaching, and veterinary medicine. He describes the leadership changes within and the politics of the school, exploring some of the conflicts that arose over the course of his career. In discussing changing leadership, Dr. Osborne also comments on his own leadership roles. He then describes the internal and external relationships of the vet school, in aligning itself with the Academic Health Center and establishing reciprocity with the University of Wisconsin. Dr. Osborne returns to discussions of leadership within the school in describing the tenures of deans Sidney Ewing, David Thawley, and Bob Dunlop. In returning to his role within the department as clinician, researcher, and teacher, Dr. Osborne again shares his philosophy of veterinary medicine.
Biographical Sketch
Carl Osborne was born December 17, 1940 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and moved to Richfield, Indiana when he was nine years old. His childhood relationships with animals inspired his pursuit of veterinary medicine. After completing his pre-veterinary training in 1960, he earned his D.V.M. from Purdue University in 1964. That same year, Dr. Osborne and his family moved to Minneapolis, where he took a tenure track position at the University of Minnesota in the College of Veterinary Medicine and pursued his Ph.D. researching the urinary tract. He completed his doctoral work in 1970. He also held a joint appointment with the Department of Pediatrics in the 1970s, working with the pediatric nephrology division. During his time at the University, Dr. Osborne has held several leadership positions, including Chair of Small Animal Clinical Sciences Department from 1976 to 1984 and Chair of the Companion Animals Department. He began the Minnesota Urolith Center in 1984, which continues to research the prevention of and cures for diseases of the urinary system in companion animals. Dr. Osborne earned many teaching and research awards over the course of his career, including the Distinguished Teacher Award. Dr. Osborne passed away on March 5, 2017.
Interview Transcript