Colby Community College vet tech instructor Dr. Cathy McMulkin has seen 36 Colby Community College commencement ceremonies. Friday’s event will be the final one she attends as a faculty member. “Dr. Mac,” as students and staff call her, announced her retirement last fall.

“I came to Colby in 1978. It was also the same year Bob Selby was hired to teach in the business department. We used to joke about which one of us would leave first. He officially retired a couple of years ago, so now I can go,” she said with a laugh.

The plan wasn't necessarily to stay at CCC for nearly four decades and work for five college presidents. “From time to time there was a thought to go into private practice,” she said. “It took about five or six years for me to realize this is where I should be.”

Her 37 years of CCC memories originate from the same office in the Stanley Carr Agricultural Center. The vet tech program she has taught in started in 1969 and today is one of the oldest programs in the country. A notable change Dr. McMulkin has seen is the increase in colleges offering vet tech degrees.

“When I started, there were only 55 programs nationwide. Now there are 225 listed on the AVMA web site.”

When asked what she’ll miss most about CCC, she replied, “The students and faculty.”

A reception was held in her honor earlier this month.