Leadership, patient care, legislative advocacy — are just a few of the numerous accolades earned by the West Virginia University School of Pharmacy at the 2022 American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Annual Meeting and Exposition.
APhA 2022 was held in San Antonio, Texas, from March 18 to 21. It was the first in-person meeting and exposition for the association since 2019, and the WVU School of Pharmacy made a sensational return.
Dr. Mary Euler, professor and associate dean for admissions and student affairs, was recognized as the 2022-2023 APhA Honorary President. Euler was chosen for her career-long impact on developing pharmacy leaders through over 20 years as executive director of the pharmacy leadership society Phi Lambda Sigma and for providing mentorship and support to student pharmacists through multiple faculty positions for more than three decades.
Dr. Krista Capehart, clinical associate professor and director of the Wigner Institute for Advanced Pharmacy, Education and Research, presented the 2022 Hubert H. Humphrey Award, recognizing APhA members who have made significant contributions in government and legislative service. The award acknowledges Capehart's contributions as a West Virginia Board of Pharmacy employee to drafting legislation, testifying before legislative committees, and educating government and state agencies on the benefits of expanding patient access to empower pharmacists to maintain public health and safety.
Jenn Clutter, a program coordinator for the School of Pharmacy, was presented with the APhA-ASP - American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists National Chapter Advisor of the Year. The award recognizes advisors of APhA–ASP Chapters who have promoted, with distinction, the welfare of student pharmacists through various patient care projects, community outreach, leadership development, and professional opportunities. Clutter has served as co-chair of WVU's Academic Advising Council since August 2020. The same year, she received WVU's Nicholas Evans Professional Staff Advising Excellence Award the same year.
Dr. Gretchen Garofoli, clinical associate professor, was selected by The APhA Academy of Pharmacy Practice and APhA-APPM as a 2022 Fellow. Garofoli was recognized for her notable contributions to the profession related to COVID-19, immunizations and residency training and support.
Third-year student pharmacist Miranda J. Moser was one of four students in the country to receive the APhA Student Leadership Award. Moser is from Morgantown, West Virginia. The APhA Student Leadership Awards recognize outstanding academic achievement and leadership ability in the APhA-Academy of Student Pharmacists (ASP) at the local, regional, and national levels of students who are currently in their next to the last year of pharmacy school. The other student winners were from the University of Florida, The University of Tennessee and Lipscomb University.
Members of WVU's APhA-ASP Operation Heart were second runner up for the National Patient Care Award. The School of Pharmacy received an honorable mention for the National Immunization Champion Award in the Corporation/Institution category. In addition, faculty, student pharmacists and residents presented six posters.
Former APhA Fellows from the previous two years were recognized in person during an ice cream social. Former fellows from the School of Pharmacy include Dr. Betsy Elswick, clinical associate professor, Jann Skelton, BSPharm, '91, (2020) and Dr. Krista Capehart, clinical associate professor (2021).
The School of Pharmacy's alumni reception at the Grand Hyatt was well attended. Immediate past Executive Vice President and CEO Thomas Menighan was there, as well as the current CEO Scott Knoer.
