Dr. Karen Cornell is currently the Associate Dean for Professional Programs at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences. Dr. Cornell graduated from the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1988 and practiced for several years in an all small animal practice in southern Indiana before returning to Purdue to complete a small animal rotating internship, small animal surgical residency and a Ph.D. in cancer biology. She then began her career as an academic faculty member at the University of Georgia, College of Veterinary Medicine. During her 18 years at UGA, Dr. Cornell served as the Chief of Staff for Surgery, the assistant department head in the Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, the Interim Director of the Teaching Hospital, the Director of Continuing Education and the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. In 2012, Dr. Cornell was chosen as a fellow in the Southeastern Conference Academic Leadership Development Program and participated in the yearlong leadership-training program.

In addition to her leadership roles within the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine, she has served as the chair of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons Examination Committee, a member of the ACVS Ad Hoc Residency Requirements Implementation Committee, the ACVS Examination Restructuring Committee, a member of the Board of Regents, and is currently President-elect for the same organization. Karen was the co-leader of the AAVMC Leadership Academy from 2016-2019 and is the AAVMC liaison to the Primary Care Educator group. She served as the President of the International Veterinary Communication Institute for 3 years and currently is a member of the Board of Directors for the Veterinary Leadership Institute.

Over the course of her career Dr. Cornell has received numerous awards including the Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship, the highest award for teaching at the University of Georgia. She is a two-time recipient of the Carl J Norden/Pfizer/Zoetis Distinguished Teaching Award and in 2011 she received the National Student AVMA Community Outreach Excellence Award.