Fulfilling a Mission

Fulfilling a Mission

By Lauren Quinn

“You can’t do good science without good animals.”

That’s the philosophy of Vickie Jarrell, associate director of the Illinois Agricultural Experiment Station—the entity on campus that fulfills the university’s land-grant mission. Research animals that aren’t cared for properly are in no condition to advance science, she believes. That’s why Jarrell has dedicated more than 18 years of her professional life to ensuring that all animals used for research, at the University of Illinois and at universities across the country, are treated humanely, housed in clean and comfortable conditions, and maintained in optimal health.

“If we are going to keep animals in order to advance science for the benefits of both humans and other animals, we owe them the highest quality of care,” she says.

An animal scientist who grew up in small farming communities out west, Jarrell followed her love of farm animals to Illinois in 1977 to study as an undergraduate in the Department of Animal Sciences. She went on to earn master’s and doctoral degrees in reproductive physiology in the department.

IT’S THE LAW

Animals used for research have been protected under federal law for decades. Under the 1966 Animal Welfare Act, protocols involving regulated animals must be reviewed by campus Institutional Animal Care and Use Committees (IACUC) before experiments can begin.

But agricultural animals? They are exempt when the research relates to production of food and fiber. But the Urbana- Champaign campus decided to oversee animal activities regardless of the types of research conducted.

That decision came in 2000, when U of I applied for campuswide accreditation by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care, International (AAALAC, I.), an organization that ensures facilities meet the highest standards of care for research animals.

“It’s like the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval,” Jarrell says. “AAALAC accreditation matters to funding agencies—they want to know the experimental protocols have been reviewed rigorously by the IACUC, but also that the housing, veterinary care, and everything else pass muster.”

SETTING THE STANDARD

Because its animal programs had been largely unreviewed prior to accreditation, the animal sciences department needed to demonstrate that its facilities and husbandry met AAALAC standards.

According to Jarrell, “Excellent animal care was taking place, but little was written down. The program didn’t have the necessary structure, but the farm employees were already doing high quality work.”

The department hired Jarrell to document the existing programs in animal sciences and develop the pieces forming the needed structure. It meant a significant amount of paperwork, frequent visits to the university’s farms, and meeting upon meeting with campus administrators, but Jarrell and the animal sciences team got it done within six months—in time for AAALAC’s first site visit. And, yes, campuswide accreditation was earned. Today, only about 15 percent of accredited programs include their agricultural animals.

“Vickie has the kind of personality that makes everyone comfortable—from farm workers to university administrators. They trust her, which created a world of difference in making the argument for folding agricultural animals into the program,” says Rodney Johnson, department head for animal sciences.

The Agricultural Animal Care and Use Program was born out of the AAALAC accreditation process, and Jarrell was director of the program until 2014. During that time, she also served as an ad hoc consultant for AAALAC, I., traveling on site visits to universities across the country, particularly those with agricultural animal programs.

“Few AAALAC consultants have real experience with ag animals in ag settings. This is where Vickie has been an invaluable contributor nationwide,” says Neal Merchen, former associate dean and professor emeritus in the college.

Thanks to her rare expertise, Jarrell has recently been elected to the Council on Accreditation for AAALAC, I.

“As far as an individual that has made a commitment to upholding, overseeing, and advocating for the appropriate use of animals in research and teaching settings, there would be very few people that have made more contributions nationally than Vickie Jarrell,” Merchen says. “That’s no exaggeration.”