MU| N e w s
Pharmacy faculty honored
P1 Lorin M. Sheppard Teacher of the Year –
Mohamed Amin
The assistant professor of pharmaceutical
sciences and pharmacogenomics goes out of his
way to help students achieve their goals and, says
one student, is “beyond helpful” when students
have questions or concerns.
P2 Lorin M. Sheppard Teacher of the Year –
Kierstan Etheridge
The lab director and assistant professor of
pharmacy practice stresses interactive learning
and relates well to students. She not only wants
students to succeed, writes one student, “but also
fulfill their potential.”
P3 Lorin M. Sheppard Teacher of the Year –
Rachel Kasper
The assistant professor of pharmacy practice
helped design and implement the first capstone
course. She provides students an outstanding
experience to help prepare them for their
Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences.
Outstanding Service Award – Holly Robison
The assistant professor of pharmacy practice
embraces the Manchester Mission, writes
a colleague, and is involved broadly in the
community. She was the primary coordinator of
Orientation Week service projects and served as
chair of the Honor Council.
Scholar of the Year – Rob Beckett
The associate professor of pharmacy practice, he
also is director of the Drug Information Center.
He is, writes a colleague, “the embodiment of
a teacher-scholar” who involves students in his
research and designs projects that align with
students’ career goals.
MU offers nation’s first dual
degree in pharmacy, PGx
Manchester has launched the first and only dual degree in the nation
that will graduate students with both Doctor of Pharmacy and Master
of Science in Pharmacogenomics degrees.
Pharmacogenomics (PGx) is the field known as personalized or
precision medicine. The study of the relationship between an
individual’s genes and his or her response to a medication allows
physicians and other clinicians to prescribe drugs to maximize therapy
early on and avoid or decrease the chance of adverse effects.
Manchester’s program allows students pursuing a Pharm.D. degree
to complete the PGx degree within the same four-year time frame as
traditional Pharm.D. students. The dual degree allows for taking courses
that fulfill both degrees, creating a more cost-effective and integrated
learning experience than earning each degree separately.
“This marks a significant step toward furthering not only Manchester’s
distinction and excellence within the pharmacy education landscape but
also a monumental advancement in the education of the pharmacist
that will promote leaders in the future of personalized medicine,”
said W. Thomas Smith, professor and dean of Pharmacy Programs at
Manchester.
Manchester | 7