School of Pharmacy News: Summer 2022
Pharmacy Faculty Net Major Honors While Students Present and Advocate for the Profession
Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Joseph Cusimano, Pharm.D., BCPP, has been named the Virginia Pharmacists Association (VPhA) 2022 Distinguished Young Pharmacist. Sponsored by Pharmacists Mutual Insurance Company, this award recognizes individual excellence and outstanding contributions to pharmacy associations and communities by new practitioners. He was recognized at the VPhA Annual Convention, which ran from Aug. 12-14 in Virginia Beach.
Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice Sarah Parnapy-Jawaid, Pharm.D., has been appointed as a 2022-2023 member of the VPhA board of directors for Region D. The board, elected by the membership of the organization, is the oversight and policymaking body of the Virginia Pharmacists Association. She also presented “Leading Change Through Motivational Interviewing” at the VPhA convention this summer. This reviewed the principles of motivational interviewing and how to utilize these skills into practice, as well as covered the the microskills (OARS) of motivational interviewing and applying the presented concepts to scenarios.
Associate Clinical Professor of Pharmacy Nicole Slater, Pharm.D., BCACP, presented “Functional Medicine-Rediscovering the Pharmacist’s Role in Patient Care” at the VPhA Annual Meeting. The presentation covered the differences between conventional and functional medicine, how functional medicine fits into patient care, and much more.
Assistant Dean of Assessment & Associate Professor of Pharmacy Thomas Ellington, Pharm.D., completed the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Academic Leadership Fellows Program “Lead With Your Strengths.” The program’s focus was “Transformation and Transitions in Changing Times.”
Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Biopharmaceutical Sciences Timothy Bloom, Ph.D., was recently inducted into the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Board of Directors.
Pharmacy students Joseph Robinson (P3), Leeann Williamson (P3) and Sewit Araia (P4) recently participated in the Summer Leadership Institute in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the American Pharmacists Association. They learned about the organization’s opportunities and networked with students from all over the country.
Pharmacy student Kendall Kolk’s (P4) poster, “Influence of Underrepresented Minority Status on Pharmacy Residency Application and Match Rates,” was chosen as a finalist in the Trainee Poster Competition at the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Annual Meeting in Grapevine, Texas. Only 35 students & residents from the entire country were selected. Collaborators included Sanaa Belrhiti, Pharm.D., BCPS, BCCCP; Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice Kayla Joyner, Pharm.D., BCPS; Tambe Ayuk-Arrey, Pharm.D. candidate; Professor of Pharmacy Practice and Director of Postgraduate Education Mark Johnson, Pharm.D., BCPS; and Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice Kelsey Morgan, Pharm.D., MPH, BCPS.
