Holly Bender
DVM, PhD, Diplomate ACVP (Clinical Pathology)
Interim Director Preparing Future Faculty and the Graduate Student
Teaching Certificate and Professor of Clinical Pathology
Veterinary Pathology
hbender@iastate.edu
(515) 294-3584
3024 Morrill Hall and 2254 Vet Med
Expertise / Research Area
Dr. Holly Bender is a veterinary clinical pathologist who is focused on creating tools and methods to
improve higher education, especially in the areas of diagnostic skills and problem solving. She is also the
Interim Director of the Iowa State University Preparing Future Faculty program at the Center for
Excellence in Learning and Teaching. She has received 28 teaching awards and 10 teaching honors
including those on the College, University, State and National level. She is dedicated to the improvement of
medical education through scholarly research and software development and brings together experts from a
wide range of disciplines including instructional design and evaluation, veterinary medical informatics,
computer science and clinical pathology. She led the design, development and implementation of a
cognitive tool named the Diagnostic Pathfinder. The Pathfinder is in use in 20 veterinary schools in the
US, Canada, Australia, South America and Europe. Recently, she has been collaborating with faculty who
are motivated to engage their students actively in the fields of toxicology, pharmacology, parasitology,
internal medicine, anatomic pathology, microbiology, physics, English, statistics and engineering.
Teaching
VPth 425 Clinical Pathology
Gr. St. 585 Preparing Future Faculty Introductory Seminar
Gr. St. 586 Preparing Future Faculty Intermediate Seminar
Gr. St. 587 Preparing Future Faculty Teaching Practicum
Gr. St. 588 Preparing Future Faculty Special Topics
Education
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Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Pathology
1987 Doctor of Philosophy, Clinical Pathology, Virginia Tech
1987 Clinical Pathology Residency VMRCVM and the University of Georgia
1979 Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Michigan State University
1976 Bachelor of Science, Microbiology, Michigan State University
Selected Publications
Bender HS, Danielson, JA. A Novel Educational Tool for Teaching Diagnostic Reasoning and
Laboratory Data Interpretation to Veterinary (and Medical) Students. Clinics in Laboratory
Medicine. 2011 Mar; 31(1): 201-215.
Sponseller BA, Strait E, Jergens A, Trujillo J, Harmon K, Koster L, Jenkins-Moore M, Killian M, Swenson
S, Bender HS, Waller K, Miles K, Pearce T, Yoon KJ, and Nara P. Influenza A pandemic (H1N1) 2009
virus infection in domestic cat. Emerg Infect Dis. 2010 Mar; 16(3):534-7.
Danielson, JA, Mills, EM, Vermeer, PJ, and Bender, HS (2008). The Diagnostic Pathfinder: Ten years of
using technology to teach diagnostic problem solving In F. Columbus (Ed.), Educational Technology
Research Advances: Nova Science Publishers
Danielson JA, Fales-Williams AJ, Sorden SD, Myers RK, Bender HS, Mills EM. Peer Assessment of a
Final-Year Capstone Experience for Formative Evaluation of a Pathology Curriculum. J Vet Med Educ,
September 2008; 35: 466 - 474.
Danielson J.A., Mills, E.M, Vermeer, P.J., Preast, V.A., Young, K.M., Christopher, M.M., George, J.W.,
Wood, D.R. and Bender, H.S. Characteristics of a Cognitive Tool that Helps Students Learn Diagnostic
Problem Solving. Educational Technology Research and Development 55, 499-520, 2007.
Preast, V.A., Danielson, J.A., Bender, H.S. and Bousson, M.. Effectiveness of a computer-based tutorial
for teaching how to make a blood smear. Vet Clin Pathol. 2007 Sep ;36 (3):245-52.
A Fales-Williams, JA Danielson, R Myers, S Sorden, HS Bender. The Case Correlation Assignment:
Connecting Antemortem and Postmortem Data in the Senior Year at Iowa State University. J Vet Med
Educ, Spring 2007; 34: 183 - 193.
Bender, H.S., Young, K. M., Danielson, J. A., Mills, E.M., Vermeer, P.J., Development and
Implementation of the Diagnostic Pathfinder, A Mind Tool Used to Teach Clinical Pathology. Conference
Proceedings of the Association of American Medical Colleges Central Group on Educational Affairs.
University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison, Wisconsin, April 8, 2005.
Danielson JA, Bender HS, Mills EM, Vermeer PJ, Preast VA: Helping Learners Gain Diagnostic Problem
Solving Skills: Specific Aspects of the Diagnostic Pathfinder Software Tied to Learning Outcomes.
Association for Educational Communications and Technology, 2004
HS Bender, KM Young, JW George, MM Christopher, JA Danielson, PJ Vermeer, EM Mills, RD Wood,
PD Pion, VA Preast, CB Andreasen. Implementation of the Diagnostic Pathfinder, an Internet-Based Tool
to Teach Clinical Pathology in Diverse Educational Settings. Conference Proceedings of the American
College of Veterinary Pathologists and the American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology 346-359,
2003.
Danielson JA, Bender HS, Mills EM, Vermeer PJ, Lockee BB: A Tool for Helping Veterinary Students
Learn Diagnostic Problem Solving. Educational Technology Research and Development 52: 63-81, 2003
Bender HS, Lockee BB, Danielson JA, Mills EM, Boon GD, Burton JK, Vermeer PJ, Zimmerman KL,
Hilmer KM: Mechanism-based diagnostic reasoning: thoughts on teaching introductory clinical pathology.
Vet Clin Pathol 29: 77-83, 2000
Zimmerman KL, Bender HS, Boon GD, Prater MR, Thorn CE, Prater D, Robertson JL, Saunders GK,
Sponenberg DP, Inzana KD, Lanz OI, Wright E: A comparison of the cytologic and histologic features of
meningiomas in four dogs. Vet Clin Pathol 29: 29-34, 2000
BB Lockee, HS Bender, DI Bounous. Clinical Chemistry Through Distance Education: Resource Sharing
for Effective Program Development. Spring 1999 Volume 25 (1) Journal of Veterinary Medical Education.
Honors & Awards
Awards
 2011 ISU SCAVMA Award for Outstanding Teaching in the Clinical Sciences
 2009 William O. Reece Award for Outstanding Academic Advising
 2008 Norden Distinguished Teacher Award- Iowa State University CVM
 2007 Iowa State University Sesquicentennial Hubbard Award for Teaching Excellence
 2007 ISU SCAVMA Award for Outstanding Teaching in the Clinical Sciences
 2004 National Carl J. Norden-Pfizer Distinguished Teacher Award - Outstanding Veterinary
Medical Educator of the Year
 2004 National SAVMA Teaching Excellence Award
 2004 Norden Distinguished Teacher Award- Iowa State University CVM
 2004 VEISHEA Faculty/Staff Member of the Year-ISU CVM
 2003 ISU SCAVMA Award for Outstanding Teaching in the Basic Sciences
 2002 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 2004
 2002 XCaliber Award for Excellence in Teaching with Technology
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Honors
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2002 Clifton Garvin Fellowship Award for Research Excellence
2001 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 2003
2001 W.E. Wine Award for Teaching Excellence at Virginia Tech
2000 VMRCVM Teaching Excellence Award
2000 Virginia Tech Certificate of Teaching Excellence
1999 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 2001
1997 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1999
1996 Merck Creative Teaching Award
1993 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1995
1992 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1994
1991 Merck Creative Teaching Award
1991 Norden Distinguished Teacher Award VMRCVM
1988 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1991
1988 VMRCVM Teaching Excellence Award
1985 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1988
1984 Young Investigator Award, American Diabetes Association
1983 VMRCVM Teacher of the Year Award, Class of 1986
2010 Marshal for ISU CVM Class of 2010 Graduation
Featured Speaker for Senior Banquet, Class of 2010
2009 Marshal for ISU CVM Class of 2009 Graduation
2007 Marshal for ISU CVM Class of 2007 Graduation
2006 Fellowship, Wakonse Conference on College Teaching, Camp Miniwanca, MI
2006 “Hooder” for ISU CVM Class of 2006 Graduation
2005 Senate Resolution 29-recognition by the State of Iowa General Assembly for Teaching
Excellence
2005 “Hooder” for ISU CVM Class of 2005 Graduation
2004 Marshal for ISU CVM Class of 2004 Graduation
2001 Induction into the Academy of Teaching Excellence Virginia Tech
Memberships
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American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology (ASVCP) 1982-present
American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP) 1995-present
American Veterinary Medical Society (AVMA) 1979-present
Phi Zeta Veterinary Honor Society 1979-present, President of Chi chapter 1988-91