Celebrating 31 years at the CVM with Professor Mark Rutherford

VBS Associate Professor Mark Rutherford retired on September 6 after a three decade-long career in teaching, research and service in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences.  As a graduate from Illinois State University with B.S. and M.S. degrees in chemistry and biochemistry and a Ph.D. degree in immunology from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, he completed postdoctoral training at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee before joining the CVM faculty as an Assistant Professor. 

Rutherford's research was in the field of molecular immunology. His laboratory conducted investigations into the molecular aspects of host-pathogen interactions, including transcriptome approaches to understanding both the host response as well as the pathogenic mechanisms employed by pathogens. This work resulted in over seventy published journal articles, reviews and book chapters. 

Rutherford’s award-winning contributions in teaching included leadership in immunology, scientific reading and agents of disease courses for veterinary students; the creation and coordination of graduate courses in research ethics, successful grant writing, and student seminars;  and a critical teaching role in a long-standing immunology course for undergraduates. He was a dedicated advisor for eleven graduate students and six postdoctoral trainees, a supportive mentor of junior faculty, and a member of the thesis advisory committees for fifty-five students.  

He went above and beyond the normal committee assignments expected of faculty, by taking on important leadership roles in CVM administration. After serving as Director of Graduate Studies for the College’s Comparative and Molecular Bioscience's graduate program, Rutherford was appointed as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in 2008 and simultaneously served as Director of the Veterinary Summer Scholars Program. He was an ardent champion for diversity, equity and inclusion in the graduate programs and the College in general and made several innovative and enduring improvements in graduate education. Last year his efforts were recognized when he received the University of Minnesota's Provost Award for Excellence in Academic Unit Service.  

Dr. Rutherford will now join the ranks of the department's Emeritus faculty. We honor his dedicated service and many contributions to the University of Minnesota and Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences and give Mark our best wishes as he begins the next chapter of his life.