We are Delighted to Welcome our Subject Matter Experts

Alyssa Mages (she/her/hers)
BS CVT FVTE
Co-Founder/Chief Visionary Officer (CVO) Empowering Veterinary Teams®, LLC
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Alyssa is the Chief Visionary Officer (CVO) of EVT (Empowering Veterinary Teams®), where she oversees the content development, clinical skills training, and overall vision of the company. She co-founded EVT to provide training programs, RACE-approved CE, training materials, and coaching/learning opportunities for veterinary practices, as well as content development and training directives for veterinary industry service providers. 

Alyssa graduated from the University of Rhode Island with a BS in Marine Biology which led her to the education/conservation track. Ultimately, her desire to learn and do more led her to transition to the veterinary field where she attained an AS in Veterinary Technology from Manor College, and added CVT to her credentials. 

She has 20 years of veterinary experience and has worked in numerous sectors of the industry. Throughout her tenure she has held multiple leadership roles including Lead Veterinary Technician, Adjunct Professor, and Education & Development Coordinator. 

As her career has shifted along with EVT, Alyssa is also thrilled to be a member of the Board of Directors for Pawsibilities VetMed, and GIVE; an advisor for BlendVet; the Director of MentorVet Tech; a co-founder and the Director of Veterinary Strategy for nûrtûr; and co-founder of the non-profit organization Project Sticker. Alyssa is also excited to be working with various industry providers as a Key Opinion Leader (KOL) and professional speaker. 

Since 2021, Alyssa has been working with many amazing teams in our profession all over North America, spoken at multiple national conferences, co-authored a book, written a textbook chapter and several articles, and has also been featured on multiple podcasts. She is passionate about ensuring that everyone has a voice in veterinary medicine so that we can continue to build a stronger profession, together.

Amy Newfield (she/her/they)
CVT VTS(ECC)
Professional Unicorn & Owner of Veterinary Team Training
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Amy is a professional unicorn, and owner of Veterinary Team Training. After starting in a rural general practice with one doctor, Amy has worked for almost every business sector including private, corporate, non-profit, and federal government. She has held several board positions in the Academy of Veterinary Emergency & Critical Care Technicians & Nurses including President. After obtaining a Master’s in Leadership and Management, she published the award-winning and best-selling books “Oops, I Became a Manager” and “Oops, My Team is Toxic.” She lives in Massachusetts with her wonderful furry kids, where you can find her eating chocolate, running in the woods, competing in agility, and diving in the ocean.

Mandy Dale (she/her/hers)
BFA MEd
Assistant Professor in Clinical Sciences at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine
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Mandy possesses a Master’s of Education from the University of Calgary, and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Lethbridge. She spent 15 years working in professional theatre and alongside her theatre career, Mandy began to work in simulation training and learner assessment. She discovered a passion for communication and conflict resolution that inspired her to earn a Certificate in Conflict Coaching with the Justice institute of British Columbia. In partnership with the Canadian Olympic Committee, Mandy designed a program that utilizes improvisation, role play, and communication coaching to support training in maintaining composure and managing conflict. She continues to deliver this program to Canadian athletes, coaches, and high-performance directors.

In 2016, Mandy made the shift to a career in higher education and eventually found her way into a position as Professional Skills Advisor with the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Calgary. In January 2024, she moved her family to the island of Saint Kitts in the Caribbean and began in her current role as Assistant Professor in Clinical Sciences at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. She teaches clinical communication to students in the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program, coordinates the professionalism program, and supports colleague training and development. In winter 2025, Mandy will begin her Doctorate of Education in adult learning, and aims to focus her research on teaching and learning communication in veterinary medicine.

Scarlett Wong (she/her/hers)
BSc RVT VTS(ECC)
Certified RECOVER CPR Instructor & Veterinary Technician Program Instructor at Sheridan College
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Scarlett has been a dedicated veterinary professional since becoming a Registered Veterinary Technician in 2002. While the majority of her career has focused on emergency and ICU medicine, she also works in general practice to maintain and further develop her overall clinical skills. In addition to her clinical work, Scarlett has been an integral part of the academic community, teaching the Veterinary Technician program at Sheridan College since 2010. Currently, she is pursuing a Master of Science in One Health, with the goal of leveraging her extensive experience in veterinary medicine, to contribute to addressing global health challenges.

Her role as a certified RECOVER CPR instructor has allowed her to combine two of her passions, education and complex emergency medicine. In this role, she travels all over, visiting practices and supporting the teams' understanding of both basic and advanced life support techniques. Through that journey, one thing that has stood out is, regardless of what type of emergency situation you might face, every person on the team has a role to play – whether involved in the actual patient medicine or not. She is excited to bring her perspective on the non-medical aspects of workflow and considerations during an emergency situation to all team members – helping them shape their plans for these inevitable moments in practice.

With Special Guest
Ted Morris (he/him/his)
DVM
Veterinarian & Comedian
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Dr. Ted Morris started his comedy career while looking for a way to blow off steam during veterinary school. Since graduating from the Ontario Veterinary College in 2001, he has been dividing his time between small animal practice in Toronto, and stand-up comedy. 

Now a veteran of the Canadian comedy scene, his TV credits include multiple appearances at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival, Halifax Comedy Festival and Just for Laughs Montreal, being goofy with Rick on Comedy Night with Rick Mercer, and being insulted by Simon Cowell on America’s Got Talent. He is still undefeated on CBC Radio’s The Debaters, has been nominated for a Canadian Comedy Award for Best Stand-Up, and can be seen on stages across Canada, and around the world. 

He’s pretty funny. Even his cat patients think so.