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Updated on
Published 6/13/25
Story contact: Nicholas Childress, CVMMarCom@missouri.edu
Photos by Karen Clifford
Annabelle Burnum, DVM, an assistant clinical professor in the University of Missouri’s Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, has been selected as a 2025–27 LEAP Fellow. The Learning and Expanding Abilities for Professoriate (LEAP) Fellows Program is a highly selective, two-year professional development initiative designed to support early-career faculty members as they grow into academic leaders.
Offered through Mizzou’s Office of the Provost, the LEAP program provides assistant professors — both tenure-track and non-tenure-track — with resources, mentorship and peer support during the crucial early years of their academic careers. Participants engage in monthly cohort meetings focused on key topics such as teaching, research, career planning and work-life balance. These sessions are designed to foster collaboration and conversation among new faculty across disciplines.
“I’m incredibly honored to join the 2025–27 LEAP Fellows cohort this fall,” Burnum said. “This is a wonderful opportunity to strengthen my teaching, mentorship and leadership skills, connect with early career faculty across disciplines and grow in my service to the College of Veterinary Medicine. I couldn’t be more excited.”