USPHS Vet Category - Chief Professional Officer

CAPT Terri R. Clark

CAPT Terri R. Clark became the 10th Chief Veterinarian for the United States Public Health Service on October 1, 2011. As Chief Veterinary Officer, CAPT Clark is responsible for providing leadership and coordination of USPHS veterinary professional affairs for the Office of the US Surgeon General and the Department of Health and Human Services. She also provides guidance and advice to the Surgeon General and the Veterinary Professional Advisory Committee on matters such as recruitment, retention, career development, and readiness of PHS veterinarians.

CAPT Clark also serves as the Director, Office of Animal Care and Use, Office of the Director, Office of Intramural Research, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. As the Director, OACU, CAPT Clark serves as the principal advisor to the Deputy Director for Intramural Research on the NIH Intramural animal research program (IARP) and is responsible for leading and implementing the NIH Intramural authority for compliance with all applicable federal and local laws, regulations, policies, and standards regarding the humane care and use of laboratory animals. The NIH IARP is the world's largest biomedical research program whose mission is to conduct basic, applied, and clinical research to provide medical advances for the American and international public. By providing federal regulatory oversight, national accreditation standards, policy development, program liaison/consultation, and training for the NIH IARP, CAPT Clark and the Office of Animal Care and Use provide a critical and far reaching public health role and impact.

CAPT Clark has spent the past 11 years as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service. She transferred to the USPHS in July 2000, and spent one and a half years at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH. She transferred to OACU in March 2002, where she now serves as Director.

Prior to joining the Public Health Service, CAPT Clark served in the US Army Veterinary Corps for 11 and a half years with tours of duty at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center, Colorado; the Academy of Health Sciences, Fort Sam Houston, Texas; Brookes Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas; the US Army Medical Research Institute for Chemical Defense, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland; the Naval Medical Research Institute, Bethesda, Maryland; San Diego Naval Medical Center, California; and the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington, DC.

CAPT Clark received her Bachelor of Science degree in Animal and Dairy Science in 1982 and her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree in 1988, from Auburn University, Alabama. During her years of Army service, CAPT Clark completed a four year residency program in laboratory animal medicine and was boarded as a Diplomate of the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine, in 1996.

CAPT Clark has served as the Chair of the Veterinary Professional Advisory Committee (VPAC), two terms as a VPAC voting member and on numerous commissioned corps subcommittees. She deployed to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in support of hurricane recovery efforts in 2005, and again in 2006, to the FEMA Gulf Recovery Office to assist with the State of Louisiana’s pet evacuation planning. She currently serves as the Coordinator, Animal Resources Team, one of nine emergency response teams for NIH's emergency and disaster response Continuity of Operations.

CAPT Clark's membership in professional organizations includes the American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine, American Society for Laboratory Animal Practitioners, American Association for Laboratory Animal Science, National Association of Biomedical Research, American Veterinarian Medical Association, the D.C. Academy of Veterinary Medicine, and the Commissioned Officers Association. She is a member of McLean Bible Church, McLean, Virginia.

CAPT Clark has been awarded numerous commissioned officer awards to include the US Public Health Service Outstanding Service Medal and Commendation Medal, and the US Army Meritorious Service Medal, Commendation Medal and Parachutist (Airborne) Badge.

CAPT Clark is proudly married to Colonel Peter Schultheiss, US Army Veterinary Corps.