Dr. Ruby. L. Perry has served as dean of the Tuskegee University College of Veterinary Medicine since 2015. She is also a professor of veterinary radiology and the immediate past president of the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges. She earned her DVM from Tuskegee and a master’s degree in microbiology from Michigan State University. Dr. Perry holds a doctorate in educational leadership and is board-certified by the American College of Veterinary Radiology. She received the American Veterinary Medical Association’s 2024 Frederick Douglass Patterson Lifetime Achievement Award.
1. Are you advocating specific themes or initiatives as dean of the Tuskegee University veterinary college?
One of my themes in 2024 is raising the bar to excellence. People are like, “Well, shouldn’t you be doing that all the time?” Sometimes, we get stuck in our comfort zone and don’t raise the bar because we think we’re doing pretty good. We don’t know we’re not doing a good job unless somebody says so. I enjoy talking to generational students who are going to be leaders in the veterinary profession and who bring to my attention how we could do things better. That’s raising the bar to excellence.
2. What’s one of your favorite childhood memories?
When I was growing up in Mississippi, I was very good at math. I’m an analytical thinker and love to get in my little corner, work it out and come up with a plan. My father was a mechanic, and I worked in his mechanic shop. I would look at him putting things together, and he would say, “Hand me this and hand me that.” It was so inspiring to see him put things together and make a car run. I know I got a little of that from him.
3. Did you pursue a mathematics education?
I truly wanted to be a mathematician, and I prepared myself for that journey. I went to Miami Dade College to study computer technology and mathematics, but that journey didn’t work out for me, so I had to leave and return to Mississippi. I applied to college at Jackson State University and had to work my way through school.
4. What was your introduction to veterinary medicine?
When I came back, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I started working for a veterinarian in Jackson, Dr. Roland Powell. He graduated from Tuskegee and remained my mentor for the rest of my journey.
5. What was your first job at his practice?
I was the best kennel worker he ever had because that’s what my mother taught us — “You be the best at what you do, no matter what it is.” He then elevated me to veterinary assistant.
6. How did the experience spark your journey to be a veterinarian?
I said to Dr. Powell, “This is a great field,” and he said, “Yes, it is, and you are going to be a veterinarian.” My response was, “Well, no, I’m trying to be a mathematician.” He advised me to change my major from math to biology, which I did, and I took all the core courses. Once I completed them, he wrote my recommendation to apply to Tuskegee in 1973, and I was accepted into the veterinary program. Lord, people are going to know how old I am.
7. How do you manage fear?
Courage comes at different levels. For me, it began when I was in elementary school or maybe even earlier. My mother was a domestic housekeeper and extremely active in civil rights. She was a courageous role model, and that’s where I get my courage from. I was one of six students admitted into an all-white, desegregated high school. That’s another story. I vividly remember being in a math class, and the teacher would always single me out to answer questions. It so happened I was strong in math and could answer those questions. So she stopped calling on me.
8. Did she ever say why she kept asking you questions?
I had a conversation with her after that. I asked, “Was it because I’m Black?” She responded, “No, I just wanted to make sure you understood.” Approaching her was my way of being courageous.
9. Do you recall other moments of personal courage?
When Martin Luther King died, I went to the principal of the high school, Dr. Smith. I asked if we could do something to honor Dr. King. He told me no but that it would be fine if we wanted to do something. My asking showed a moment of courage.
10. What would you tell folks nervous about taking the lead in making changes?
If you are not courageous enough to take the lead, be courageous where you are. You don’t have to be the captain of the army, but you can be the one in the trenches. In your own circle, your own space, you can be courageous. When you know somebody is not being treated correctly, speak up, do something. Talk to that person on the side.
11. Do you have any special animals in your life?
I’m a cat person because when I went through vet school, I got stressed all the time by cats. Again, here comes the courage. I decided to get a cat because I had to learn about them, and I couldn’t keep getting scratches. I currently don’t have a cat since I travel so much. When my last cat passed away, I decided to wait until my travel schedule lightened before getting another. I have enough grand dogs and grand cats that I take care of, including gerbils.
12. What’s the first thing you do in the morning?
When I wake up, I say my prayers. I thank God for getting me through the night because each day is not promised to us. I say, “Thank you, God, for helping me be more courageous and to get to work to see what I can do to develop people.”
13. What have your life experiences taught you?
I learned on my journeys at Tuskegee and Michigan State that if I see some leadership in you, I want to help you find and develop it. That’s just who I am. I love developing people.
14. What does your typical workday look like?
I grab my cell phone and go through the text messages to see if I need to address anything crazy immediately, and then I review emails. After that, I get dressed, start the day and make every day impactful. I don’t worry about tomorrow. I can only worry about what I can do at this moment in time.
15. What brings you joy, and do you get enough of it?
I enjoy being out in nature. Any opportunity I have to drive someplace or just walk outside and look at nature brings a sense of peace to me. If I’m at home on the weekend, I’ve got to get out in a rural area, go to a park, and sometimes I just sit on a bench. I might read a book or listen to an audiobook. I enjoy looking at the dogs running around in a dog park, looking at birds, and wondering, “What kind of tree is that?” This may sound a bit cliche, but I just want to be one in nature.
16. What do you do for self-care?
On Saturdays, I do meditation before I start the day, and I love yoga. Disconnecting is so important, even if it’s only 15 minutes. I really enjoy my audiobooks.
17. Do you have any favorite audiobooks?
I just finished Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah. It’s about a woman in Russia and the struggles she had. That caused me to reflect on my journey and think, “Oh, my gosh, I can do even more.” Even though I do a lot, I can do more. I can do more. I can do more.
18. How do you stay motivated?
Sometimes, you have to help somebody else to motivate yourself, or you have to think about the good you’ve done. It’s OK to beat ourselves up sometimes, but you can’t stay there. You’ve got to say, “I could have done that better.” After you do that, you do something to keep it moving. I don’t always get it right. None of us gets it right the first time, and we sometimes don’t get it right the second or third time. That doesn’t mean you stop trying.
19. Relationships are?
Interconnected. You cannot be in this world solo. We feed off each other’s energy. We are synchronized with each other, and that’s what relationships are all about. If you have an idea that’s going to make a difference in the veterinary profession, there’s no way you’re going to make it happen entirely on your own. You have to build relationships. Everybody comes with their own strengths. I’m who I am, and you are who you are. It’s like spokes in a wheel. We have to overlook what we look like. We have to overlook gender. We have to overlook all those entities that make us different yet so interconnected. How beautiful is that?
20. Is there anything else you’d like to share?
Veterinary medicine is a beloved profession, but what’s our legacy? Many of us have parents, siblings or children who don’t know what we do and the importance of what we do. None of my children are veterinarians, but I tell them that whatever they do, remember to embrace people who may not have those opportunities. What will your legacy be when they ask, “How did you impact society?” Ask yourself, “What did I do in my community? What did I do in my home? What did I tell my children about making a difference in their communities?” I ask myself every day, “What can I do to make the veterinary profession better?”
A RICH HISTORY
Booker T. Washington co-founded Tuskegee University (then Tuskegee Institute) in 1881 in Tuskegee, Alabama. Graduates include entertainer Lionel Richie, comedian Keenen Ivory Wayans, writer Ralph Ellison and the World War II Tuskegee Airmen. Agricultural scientist George Washington Carver taught at Tuskegee for decades and is buried on campus near Booker T. Washington’s grave.
STORY ARCHIVE
Check out these previously published 20 Questions profiles:
- NAVTA President Jamie Rauscher: go.navc.com/Rauscher
- Relief veterinarian and recruiter Dr. Kemba L. Marshall: go.navc.com/Marshall
- Former AAVMC CEO Dr. Andrew Maccabe: go.navc.com/Maccabe
- Former AVMA president Dr. Mary Beth Leininger: go.navc.com/Leininger
- Practice owner Dr. Janis Shinkawa: go.navc.com/Shinkawa