At this year’s 2017 IACUC Conference (IAUC17), PRIM&R was pleased to present Marcy Brown, BS, MA, CMAR, CPIA, with the 2016 ARENA Legacy Award. Ms. Brown serves as the animal welfare regulatory compliance lead of Pfizer Global Research and Development in La Jolla, California.

In the words of the PRIM&R member who nominated Ms. Brown for the award:

“She promotes a culture of animal welfare first, and is key in influencing others to uphold our high standards. Under her watch, we continue to maintain an exemplary animal care program as evidenced through continued accreditation with AAALAC International as well as continued compliance with USDA standards. Marcy’s passion, commitment, and recognition as an experienced author, presenter, and instructor have established her reputation as an indispensable resource to those of us in the field.

Marcy has influenced countless individuals to aspire to the highest ethical standards in the animal welfare field within our institutional organization, the greater San Diego Area research community and at a national level. Marcy’s focus on organizing and developing educational workshops, book chapters, networking opportunities and mentoring relationships exemplify the passion and commitment that drives her pursuit of excellence in this field.”

That testimonial only begins to tell the tale of Ms. Brown’s significant contributions to research ethics in animal care and use that has greatly benefited the PRIM&R community.

Ms. Brown joined PRIM&R in 2000 and has been an active member ever since. She serves as chair on PRIM&R’s Council for Certified Professional IACUC Administrators, served as a member of PRIM&R’s Certification Committee, and has served as faculty at seven PRIM&R “Essentials of IACUC Administration” courses and at 12 PRIM&R conferences. 

In addition to her work with PRIM&R, Ms. Brown works as the regulatory compliance lead, where she is responsible for ensuring flawless animal care and welfare at her institution, as well as alignment with Pfizer’s global comparative medicine and research and development endeavors. Ms. Brown serves on the board of directors of the California Biomedical Research Association (CBRA) and as an AAALAC ad hoc specialist. Ms. Brown has also devoted significant time to presenting and co-facilitating presentations, workshops, and panels at the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS) and Massachusetts Society for Medical Research (MSMR) meetings.

Ms. Brown has a biology background, holds a Master of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley and is a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt. Previously, she worked for several years as the director of the IACUC at a large academic institution, giving her a broad perspective on animal welfare, research, and compliance issues in both academic and industry settings.

Ms. Brown is a standard bearer of ethical practice in animal care and use. PRIM&R was pleased to recognize her service and, on behalf of the PRIM&R membership, present her with the ARENA Legacy Award at IACUC17.

The co-recipient of the 2016 ARENA Legacy Award, Patricia MacCubbin, MS was presented with her award at PRIM&R’s 2016 Advancing Ethical Research Conference.