Elia Colon-Mallah ’88, DVM ’92 is assistant academic chair of Allied Health Sciences and director of the Veterinary Science Technology (VST) program at Suffolk County Community College (SCCC). Previously, Colon-Mallah was an adjunct instructor in the VST program and worked for 10 years as a small animal practitioner on Long Island. Under her leadership, the VST program at SCCC was transformed into one of the best veterinary technology programs in the state and country. The result has been SCCC students are better prepared to meet the demands of their profession and ultimately enjoy higher starting wages in the field of veterinary technology. Students of veterinary technology programs sit for the Veterinary Technology National Exam to become licensed veterinary technicians (LVTs). Veterinary technicians are the considered the “nurses” of the veterinary profession.

Suffolk County Community College clearly appreciated Colon-Mallah’s hard work and passion for teaching by rapidly promoting her from an adjunct instructor to director and assistant academic chair in six years. In addition to overseeing all phases of the VST program, she applied for and was awarded over $80,000 in Vocational and Technical Education grant dollars for the purchase of additional diagnostic equipment and supplies for use in instruction. To promote continuing education for LVTs in the area, Colon-Mallah was instrumental in starting the annual Veterinary Science Technology Conference. This conference is hosted by SCCC’s Vet Tech Club and supported by area practices and professional veterinary organizations to educate the community, students, and veterinarians about what it means to be a veterinary technician in the 21st century.

Originally from the Bushwick area of Brooklyn, N.Y., Colon-Mallah remembers the encouragement she received from her teachers to excel in the math and sciences. In that spirit she supports, participates in, and has been a keynote speaker for the Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP) at SCCC. The STEP program encourages high school students, especially minority students, to stay in school and to consider careers in the sciences. As an undergraduate in CALS, she was a counselor for two years in the pre-freshman summer program, a resident adviser in low Rise 9, and a member of Quill and Dagger Honor Society. While attending veterinary school, she was one of the original members of the Veterinary Players, a musical theater group organized solely for veterinary students.

Colon-Mallah continues to be very active with CALS and the university. She helped found the Cornell Latino Alumni Association (CLAA) in 1993, just one year after graduating from veterinary school. The organization has established a book scholarship and is now organizing a campaign to raise funds for an endowment to fund additional scholarships. As a lifetime member, Colon-Mallah currently represents CLAA on the Cornell Committee for Alumni Trustee Nominations and has served on the University Council since 2005. She is also a board member for both the Long Island Chapter of the ALS Alumni Association and the Cornell Club of Long Island. In the fall of 2002, Colon-Mallah joined the inaugural group of the Minority Alumni Initiatives Implementation Committee established by the Board of Trustees’ Alumni Affairs Steering Committee. Since serving on this committee, she has provided helpful insights into how to successfully engage minority alumni. Colon-Mallah also was active in planning the successful Cornell Mosaic Conference held in April 2005.

In addition to her Cornell activities, Colon-Mallah is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Association of Veterinary Technician Educators, and is a paid item writer and reviewer for the Veterinary Technology National Examination on behalf of the American Association of Veterinary State Boards. During the summers, Colon-Mallah studies diagnostic imaging and related technology.

Colon-Mallah lives in East Meadow, N.Y., with her husband, Alan Mallah, and daughter Amy Faye.