ZWNF Roy McClement’s Student / Keeper Competition

 Roy McClements, PhD. was dedicated to improving the care of captive animals and contributing to their conservation by incorporating science into their management.  A true comparative nutritionist, but also a multidisciplinary scientist, his work encompassed nutrition and reproductive success in penguins and Attwater’s prairie chickens, body condition scoring in Asian elephants, supplementing insects and a multidisciplinary project incorporating genetics, large herd health and management, and land resource sustainability. Roy inspired many students not only teaching at the University of Sydney and Tarleton State as a faculty member, but also through his interactions at zoo events and nutrition conferences.  As a tribute to Roy, and his dedication to students, the ZWNF/Nutrition Advisory Group has named the student keeper paper competition in his honor. 

The ZWNF Roy McClement’s Student / Keeper Competition is designed to recognize excellence in oral and written nutrition presentations at the ZWNF/Nutrition Advisory Group Conference. Awards for the top one to three presentations in each category will be made and awards up to $800 will be provided (award number and value dependent on number of applicants) at the NAG conference banquet.   

Requirements:

-       Full paper submission to the ZWNF/NAG conference

o   Applicant may choose to have either a full paper or an abstract only published in conference proceedings, but full paper is required for consideration and will be used during the evaluation process.

-       Oral or poster presentation at the ZWNF/NAG conference

-       Must be either a current student pursuing a degree, or a keeper or zoo staff member in non-leadership position.

To apply, submit a paper for the annual ZWNF/NAG conference at                         https://nagonline.net/conference-paper-submission-2025/

2025 ZWNF/NAG Conference:

October 19-22 2025 --- Oklahoma City, OK