2016 News and Media

December 2016

UM Natural Products Center Designated as Center of Excellence

December 30, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has renewed the National Center for Natural Products Research’s designation as a Center of Excellence in recognition of its work in botanical dietary supplement research. This is the 15th consecutive year the NCNPR has received this recognition.

As part of its partnership with the FDA, which began in 2001, the NCNPR focuses on developing…

Pharmacy Students Win NCPA Presidential Scholarships

December 28, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Two University of Mississippi pharmacy students have won presidential scholarships from the National Community Pharmacists Association. Ashley Culbertson and Lily Van, both third-professional year students, are among only 25 students nationally who received the $2,000 awards.

The NCPA represents the employees of more than 22,000 independent community pharmacies across the country, which dispense nearly half of the nation’s retail prescription medicines. The organization selects…

Larry Walker Retires as NCNPR Director

December 23, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – On Dec. 31, Larry Walker retires as director of the National Center for Natural Products Research after 35 years of service to the University of Mississippi.

Walker began his career at Ole Miss in 1981 as a research assistant professor in the School of Pharmacy. In 1987, he led a natural products discovery biological screening program, setting him up…

USDA Renews Drug Discovery Grant for Natural Products Center

December 21, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has renewed a grant for the National Center for Natural Products Research at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy for the discovery and development of bioactive products that have potential to become pharmaceuticals, agrichemicals or alternative crops for small farmers.

The grant project, “Discovery and Development of Natural Products for Pharmaceutical and…

USDA Mosquito Repellent Research Featured in “Chemical and Engineering News”

December 14, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Chemical and Engineering News, a journal of the American Chemical Society, interviewed natural products chemist Kumudini Meepagala about her research of natural products-based mosquito repellent. Meepagala works at the USDA, which partners with the School of Pharmacy’s National Center for Natural Products Research. The ongoing research hopes to produce a repellent that lasts longer and is more environmentally friendly than DEET…

Pharmacy Administration Chair Named Associate UM Provost

December 9, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Donna Strum, chair and professor of the University of Mississippi’s Department of Pharmacy Administration and research professor in the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the School of Pharmacy, will become associate provost in 2017.

A native of Germantown, Tennessee, Strum earned three degrees from UM, including a doctorate…

Pharmacy Student Finds Passion for Treating HIV Patients

December 2, 2016

JACKSON, Miss. – Kandis Backus, a fourth-year student in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, found a volunteer experience to be inspiring. She not only discovered a career path but also will have a paper published in Sexually Transmitted Diseases, the journal of the American Sexually Transmitted Diseases Association in February 2017…

Natural Products Training Center Featured in “HerbalGram”

December 1, 2016

HerbalGram, the journal of the American Botanical Society, profiled the Natural Products Training Center, a newly-dedicated space of 3,000 square feet in the Thad Cochran Research Center for the purpose of testing natural products. The Natural Products Training Center is the result of a partnership between the National Center for Natural Products Research and Waters Corporation…

Read more: “Natural Products Training Center Featured in ‘HerbalGram'”

November 2016

Two Pharmacy Students to Test Clinical Skills in National Competition

November 29, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Two students from the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy will participate in the annual American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Clinical Skills Competition, where student pharmacists demonstrate their ability to analyze and respond to clinical pharmacy scenarios.

PY4s Colleen Riley from Kansas City, Missouri, and Cody Taylor from Booneville,Mississippi, were chosen based on their performance in a local, similar competition hosted by the university’s student…

Student Wins Independent Pharmacies Grant

November 17, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Jasmine Turner, a fourth-year pharmacy student in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, received a $1,000 grant from the 2016 EPIC Pharmacies student grant program in November.

EPIC Pharmacies is a national group of independent pharmacies that annually provides grants to pharmacy students who plan to practice in independent pharmacy after graduation. This is the second…

School of Pharmacy’s Poster Session Celebrates 20th Anniversary

November 10, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. –Every year, School of Pharmacy scientists present their research findings at the school’s poster session to explore one another’s work and create partnerships. Now in its 20th year, the poster session is a well-attended forum for scientific conversation, thanks to the efforts of Julie Mikell…

UM Pharmacy Graduate Student Wins Drug Discovery Award

November 2, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. –Vedanjali Gogineni, a doctoral candidate in medicinal chemistry in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, has been awarded a 2016 Graduate Student Research Award in Drug Discovery and Development Interface from the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. AAPS gives four of these awards…

October 2016

Clinical Pharmacy Pioneer to Give UM Waller Lecture

October 24, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. –John E. Murphy, professor and associate dean for academic affairs at the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy, will deliver the 2016 Coy W. Waller Distinguished Lecture at the University of Mississippi. The Nov. 4 lecture,“Pharmacy World Domination,” will be presented at the Gertrude…

Clinical Pharmacy Professor Awarded ACCP Fellowship

October 21, 2016

JACKSON, Miss. – Dr. Katie McClendon, assistant dean for student services in the School of Pharmacy on the Jackson campus, was elected as a 2016 Fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP). The ACCP is devoted to the advancement of clinical pharmacy, which focuses on the science and practice of medication use. Fellowship in the ACCP indicates demonstrated excellence by…

Faculty and Friends Remember Ron Borne as ‘Quintessential Educator’

October 20, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – University of Mississippi faculty, staff and alumni are remembering Ronald F. Borne, 77, beloved professor emeritus of medicinal chemistry, who died Tuesday (Oct. 18). He was known as a friend to all and a constant source of encouragement to his students.

A memorial service is scheduled for 3 p.m. Sunday (Oct. 23) at Paris-Yates Chapel on the UM campus. The family will receive friends in the chapel from 1 p.m. until service time. A private inurnment will follow at Oxford Memorial Cemetery…

School of Pharmacy Awarded Funds for Diabetes Self-Management Project

October 17, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute granted a Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award of $214,084 to a team of University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy researchers to support a project that aids patients’ self-management of diabetes…

Read more: “School of Pharmacy Awarded Funds for Diabetes Self-Management Project”

Pharmacy Professor Earns Health Care Hero Award, Professional Certification

October 12, 2016

JACKSON, Miss. – Daniel M. Riche was honored with Mississippi Business Journal’s 2016 Health Care Heroes award, which recognizes contributions to health and well-being, on Sept. 29. The associate professor in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmacy Practice was chosen as one of 33 winners from around the state..

Author Returns to Oxford for School Reunion, Book Signing

October 5, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – An alumnus of the University of Mississippi school of pharmacy who has built a flourishing career as a crime novelist will sign copies of his latest thriller Saturday evening (Oct 8) in Oxford.

Robert Magarian will sign copies of “You’ll Never See Me Again, A Crime to Remember” at 7 p.m. at the Summit Lodge Bar…

September 2016

Pharmacy Practice Professor Wins Professional Service Award

September 27, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Stuart Haines, director of the Division of Pharmacy Professional Development and professor of pharmacy practice in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy will receive with the Robert M. Elenbaas Service Award from the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) for his service to the organization.

The award, named for the founding executive director of ACCP, is given to someone who has devoted exceptional time and energy to the organization, which works to advance clinical pharmacy. Haines was president of ACCP…

Phi Lambda Sigma Hosts Annual Leadership Retreat

September 8, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The Phi Lambda Sigma pharmacy leadership society hosts its annual Leadership Retreat Friday, Sep. 9 for student leaders in the School of Pharmacy. Guest speaker Mandi Stanley will deliver a presentation on public speaking, and a panel of faculty and pharmacy leaders will advise on student leadership skills.

Phi Lambda Sigma is a national society dedicated to preparing student pharmacists to be leaders in their profession. The retreat, which began at the school in 2010, is a chance for…

August 2016

Pharmacy Professor Wins UM Faculty Achievement Award

August 30, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The School of Pharmacy is delighted to announce that John P. Bentley, professor of pharmacy administration, is the recipient of the 2016 University of Mississippi Faculty Achievement Award.

At the fall faculty meeting on Friday, Aug. 26, Morris Stocks, UM provost and executive vice chancellor, called Bentley one of the university’s finest.

“His pharmacy research helps the world understand the roles that pharmacists play in…

SOP Awarded for Innovation, Service, Excellence at MSHP Annual Meeting

August 23, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – A research program and two faculty members of the University of Mississippi’s School of Pharmacy were honored at this year’s meeting of the Mississippi Society of Health-System Pharmacists in late July.

The Innovative Health-Systems Pharmacy Practice Award went to the School of Pharmacy’s Community-Based Research Program, which provides counsel to underserved areas of the state, especially in the Delta..

School of Pharmacy Graduate Student Wins $10,000 Fellowship

August 18, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Dennis Carty, a Ph.D. candidate in environmental toxicology from Dallas, received a 2016 North American Graduate Fellowship from the American College of Toxicology.

Five of these prestigious national fellowships are awarded each year by ACT, and include a two-year stipend of $5,000 per year to be used toward the recipient’s education, as well as financial assistance to attend ACT’s annual meeting…

NCNPR Scientists Awarded for Parasitic Diseases Research

August 12, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – Babu Tekwani, principal scientist in the University of Mississippi’s National Center for Natural Products Research and professor of pharmacology in the School of Pharmacy, was honored for his outstanding research contributions to global health drug discovery in tropical parasitic diseases at an international conference in León, Spain, on July 15.

He received the Distinguished Scientist Award at the inaugural…

July 2016

PY4 Student Delivers Medical Care to Peru

Huascaran National Park, Peru

July 21, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – In late June of 2016, PY4 student Caroline Bobinger traveled to Peru with ten people, including four other PY4 students from the School of Pharmacy and a preceptor from Jackson. The mission of the trip was to deliver and administer medicine and medical supplies to people of Peruvian and Quechuan descent living in the Peruvian Andes mountains. First Baptist Church of Jackson sponsored the trip, so the group also shared messages of faith with the people…

UM Pharmacy Student Awarded Phi Kappa Phi Scholarship

July 12, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – University of Mississippi pharmacy student Meghan Wagner has been named a 2016 Fellow of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, which recognizes academic excellence in higher education.

This marks the second year in a row that a student from the University of Mississippi has won a fellowship from Phi Kappa Phi, which is the oldest honor society that recognizes all academic disciplines, honoring 57 students each year from around the country…

Pharmacy Administration Department Wins Excellence in Inclusiveness Award

July 5, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The department of pharmacy administration received the 2016 Excellence in Promoting Inclusiveness in Graduate Education Award at the doctoral hooding ceremony in May. The award, which includes $2,000 for the recipient to continue the inclusiveness efforts, was established by the University of Mississippi Graduate School in 2004 to recognize individuals or programs that demonstrate a strong commitment to promoting a diverse and…

June 2016

School Honors Four at Faculty Retreat

June 17, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy honored four of its faculty members for their excellence in and commitment to research, teaching and service at its annual faculty retreat in June.

Dr. Donna West-Strum, professor and chair of Pharmacy Administration, won the Faculty Instructional Innovation Award for her..

May 2016

O’Bannons Writing a Script for Success

May 20, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – On any given day, a visitor to Chuck O’Bannon’s home in Parsons, Tennessee, might find the retired pharmacist planting a garden, making preserves from blackberries and muscadines he grows or feeding the two canine “fur babies” who have adopted him and his wife, Linda.

Ikhlas Khan Receives UM Distinguished Researcher Award

May 14, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – External recognition is always appreciated, but being honored internally by peers is far better. So says Ikhlas A. Khan, who received the University of Mississippi’s 2016 Distinguished Research and Creative Achievement Award on Saturday, May 14.

April 2016

UM Dedicates Natural Pro ducts Training Center

April 14, 2016

OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy and National Center for Natural Products Research, in partnership with Waters Corp., dedicated a state-of-the-art natural products training center including laboratories, an informatics suite and lecture space on Wednesday, April 13.

March 2016

Alumnus Establishes Pha rmacy Scholarship to Honor Mentor

March 16, 2016

If you ask Sidney Gerald “Jerry” Morgan about why he chose pharmacy, he’ll tell you about his mentor and champion of the career, John Dewey Owings Jr.

“(Owings) was like a father figure to me,” Morgan said. “He was a great influence, and I would probably not have gone to pharmacy school if it weren’t for him.”

Morgan and his wife, Susie, have created the John Dewey Owings Memorial Scholarship at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy to honor the man who first steered Morgan toward his longtime profession.

UM Collaboration Leads to New Research Center in Poland

March 10, 2016

A new center devoted to natural products research has been dedicated at Bialystok University of Technology in Poland, due in part to collaboration with the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy.

Located in Hajnowka and funded by the European Union, the state-of-the-art Scientific and Research Centre is overseen by Bialystok’s Faculty of Forestry. The center is strategically located near one of the oldest forests in Europe. Bialowieza Forest, which is 7,000 years old, holds great potential for the discovery of new natural products that could be used to develop medicines to treat abroad range of ailments.

UM Pharmacy Graduate Student Partners with St. Jude

March 3, 2016

Through a relatively new fellowship, a graduate student in the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy is working at one of the world’s premier pediatric cancer research centers, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee.

Nick Keeling, who is pursuing a doctorate in pharmacy administration, is working under the hospital’s chief patient safety officer, James Hoffman, Pharm.D., and a team in St. Jude’s Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Keeling’s work is specifically focused on patient safety and medication outcomes.

February 2016

UM Professor Elected to National Environmental Toxicology Board

February 19, 2016

Kristine Willett, professor of pharmacology and environmental toxicology at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, has been elected to the board of directors for the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

SETAC is a not-for-profit global professional organization that promotes research related to environmental contaminants, education in environmental sciences and the use of science in environmental policy. Its board of directors represents the tripartite membership of the society, which includes academic, industry and government representatives.

Cardinal Health Signs on as School’s First Platinum Sponsor

February 15, 2016

The University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy has received a $10,000 donation from Cardinal Health, designating the company as the school’s first platinum-level Professional Business Partner.

The School of Pharmacy’s professional business partners play an integral role in providing continuing professional development opportunities to students. Opportunities include new student orientation activities, participation in leadership institutes, travel to professional society meetings, legislative events, student professional research competitions and poster presentations, and town hall meetings.

FDA Expert in Product Quality to Give Waller Lecture

February 8, 2016

Mansoor A. Khan, professor and vice dean at the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Pharmacy, is slated to deliver the 2016 Coy W. Waller Distinguished Lecture at the University of Mississippi.

The Feb. 12 lecture, “Pharmaceutical Product Performance after Approvals – Need for Clinical Observations and Connection,” will be presented at the Gertrude C. Ford Center for the Performing Arts at 11 a.m.

January 2016

Dean Calls on Pharmacists in 100 Towns

January 23, 2016

Several pharmacists greeted David D. Allen, dean of the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy, as he walked into Rose’s Super Discount Drugs in Hazlehurst. The professionals reminisced about their days in pharmacy school and smiled for a photo.

“It was great to have the opportunity to reflect on our time in Oxford,” said Mike Rose (BSPh 76), who owns the drugstore with his wife, Kathy (BSPh 76). “We have a lot of Ole Miss ties in our family. I’m thankful to the dean for stopping by.”

Horticulturist Applies Knowledge from Farm to Garden

January 18, 2016

As a senior research and development horticulturist for the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy’s Maynard W. Quimby Medicinal Plant Garden, Ed Lowe brings years of farming knowledge to the table.

“Growing up in the Mississippi Delta, I was able to learn a lot about farming and the fundamentals of how it all works,” Lowe said. “Dr. Charles Burandt (former research botanist for the National Center for Natural Products Research) hired me in 2003 to work at the medicinal plant garden based on my 10 years of farming experience as well as my studies in farm management.”

Professor Receives Third Honor from Kazakh University

January 6, 2016

A professor at the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy was awarded a Silver Medal from Kazakh National Medical University in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

Samir Ross, professor of pharmacognosy and research professor in the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, was honored with the medal on Oct. 2. Ross received the medal for his long history of scientific and collaborative work with the university, which includes supervising graduate students and writing grant proposals with Kazakh researchers.

West-Strum Honored for Commitment to Pharmacy Quality

January 1, 2016

A University of Mississippi department chair and professor in the School of Pharmacy has been recognized for her efforts to improve pharmacy practice through medication safety and quality.

Donna West-Strum, pharmacy administration chair and professor, helped create the Educating Pharmacists in Quality program, which was selected as the 2015 Duncan Neuhauser Award winner by the Academy for Healthcare Improvement. The EPIQ program is used as a tool to improve the teaching of pharmacists, pharmacy students and other health care providers regarding measuring, reporting and improving pharmacy practice.