The Record Spring 2022

From the Dean

Dear alumni and friends,

Despite the many challenges facing our world, spring still returns, and with it new beginnings and reasons for joy.

We are looking forward to celebrating the new beginnings of our 2022 graduates with commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 14. We’re excited to be able to host this event largely in-person with options for livestream viewing if that works better for individuals.

In addition, this spring has us looking at a horizon of new opportunities for our college.

AACP Recognizes Speedie and Gaither with Top Awards

Dr. Marilyn Speedie, dean emeritus and professor, has been named the recipient of AACP’s 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award for her rich portfolio of accomplishments related to instruction, leadership, service and scholarship for more than two decades. Speedie will be honored, with other award recipients, at AACP’s annual meeting in July.

Dr. Caroline Gaither and colleagues will receive the Rufus A. Lyman Award, which recognizes the best paper published in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education during the previous year. The paper, “Addressing the Need for Ethnic and Racial Diversity in the Pipeline for Pharmacy Faculty,” was published in the October 2021 issue of the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education.

Mark you calendars for the UMN Biennial Pharmacogenomics Conference this fall

Registration for the 2022 UMN Pharmacogenomics (PGx) Conference is open! The event is designed for healthcare professionals such as pharmacists, physicians, nurses, physician assistants, mental health providers, program managers, or genetic counselors who are interested in implementing PGx tools to provide higher-value care to their clients. Mark your calendar for September 21-23, 2022 and visit z.umn.edu/PGx2022 to register and learn more.

"Mask-erade" with MPSA

The Minnesota Pharmacy Student Alliance invites all alumni, faculty and students to join the MPSA Banquet and Auction. The event will be hosted at the Hilton Garden Inn on Friday, April 29, 2022. Visit z.umn.edu/MPSA for ticketing or donation information. All proceeds will support students through conference attendance, professional development and MPSA initiatives.

A Tribute to Mentors During Women’s History Month

During Women's History Month, we highlighted a few of the many outstanding women who have supported our community in countless ways. The women mentioned in these stories are representative of so many in our college community who have opened doors, eliminated barriers and paved the way for others. Women featured include, Michelle Aytay, RPh, CDE, ‘95; Dr. Angela Birnbaum; Dr. Kristin Janke, '93 (PhD); Dr. Laura Palombi, ‘12; Dr. Dana Simonson ‘09; Dr. Wendy St. Peter; and Dr. Norrie Thomas.

Alumni Supporting the College of Pharmacy

The University has launched a new campaign for the next three years. The Learners to Leaders campaign will focus on three themes tied to the University’s five-year strategic plan, MPact 2025. The themes are:

To remove financial barriers to make a quality education accessible to all talented, deserving students.
Foster equity and inclusivity through systemic change and opportunities that attract and support more underrepresented students.
Support the whole student by enhancing the student experience and strengthening support services and resources.

Stay tuned for more information on the campaign and the College of Pharmacy’s priorities as we move forward.

Questions? Contact Amy Polski Larson at polsk042@umn.edu or 612-626-8975 for questions.

Alumni News

The pharmacy technology startup of Dr. Derek Borkowski, ‘18, Pyrls, is going through the Y Combinator, the world’s leading startup accelerator.
Dr. Brittney Mikell, ‘20, was interviewed for GoodRx Health’s Women in Medicine Spotlight, “Dr. Brittney Mikell on Health Equity and Social Justice.”
Dr. Carolyn O’Donnell, ‘20, was named one of the College of Psychiatric and Neurologic Pharmacists’ top 10 finalists for 2022 research awards.
The work of Dr. Haley Pals, '19 residency alumna, was recently published in the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association.

In Memoriam

Stephen Sommer, ‘60, passed away January 26, 2022. He had a long career as a pharmacist at Keller Drug and Snyder Drug Stores

Research

At the recently held spring meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Md Abdullah Al Noman, a graduate student in the Gunda I. Georg Research Group, presented research findings on a non-hormonal pill that could soon expand birth control options for men. The pill has proven 99 percent effective in preventing pregnancy in mice This research is led by Dr. Gunda Georg who expects human clinical trials to begin in the third or fourth quarter of this year. The research has received significant media attention, including The New York Times, Newsweek, the Advisory Board, Global Times and Smithsonian Magazine, among many others.

The research of Dr. Angela Birnbaum and colleagues was featured in a recent issue of JAMA Neurology. The work is outlined in the University Research Brief, “Blood levels of common antiepileptic drugs drop during pregnancy, causing breakthrough seizures.”
The research collaboration of Dr. Swati More and colleagues was featured in a recent issue of Science. The work is also outlined in the University story, “U of M Medical School researchers find that blood pressure medications impact brain function.”
Maternal ADHD and Perinatal Prescription Stimulant Use, the research of PhD student Meena Murugappan; Dr. Sarah Westberg; Dr. Joel Farley; Arun Kumar, ‘21; Abhijeet Rajpurohit; and colleagues, has been featured in a recent issue of the Journal of Attention Disorders.

Dr. Tony Olson, Dr. Brian Isetts, Dr. Tim Stratton, Dr. Lisa Hillman and Dr. Jon Schommer were all contributors to the recent Clinical Pharmacy Research Report published in the Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy: “An Exploratory QUALquan Comparison of Patient-Centeredness Priorities in Outpatient Care for Patients and Pharmacists.”

National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education granted joint Accreditation with Commendation

The National Center for Interprofessional Practice and Education was awarded Joint Accreditation with Commendation as a provider of continuing education for the interprofessional team by the governing bodies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Accreditation Program (ANCC).

"The National Center is a true gem in our University community and these commendations come as no surprise. The College of Pharmacy is privileged to collaborate with them and the School of Nursing, not only from the standpoint of interprofessional leadership, education and practice, but also in the realm of workforce development and continuing education," said Lynda Welage, PharmD, FCCP, dean of the College of Pharmacy.

Student News

Kennadie Anderson, P2 student,has been selected to serve as the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP) - Paul G. Cano Legislative Internship for Pharmacy Students this summer in Washington, D.C.
Katelyn France, P1 student, was named a finalist for the National Center for Women & Information Technology 2022 NCWIT Collegiate Award. Katelyn will also be a keynote speaker at the Northland Go Red for Women luncheon Wednesday, May 11, 2022.
Samantha Kennelly, medicinal chemistry PhD candidate, and Zoe Koerperich, PhD, ‘21, saw the need for greater equity and support of women in medicinal chemistry. Read more about their collaboration to help other women in the field.
Samantha Kennelly, medicinal chemistry PhD candidate, was awarded the Louise T. Dosdall Fellowship for the 2022-23 academic year.
Jake Noble, P3, has accepted a position on the APhA-ASP Member Engagement Standing Committee. Jake is also pharmacy director at the HOPE (Health of People Everywhere) Clinic in Duluth. He was recently interviewed for a story about the clinic’s reopening.
Priya Periakaruppan, P2 student, along with two medicine students and one nursing student delivered a Dementia Friends Informational Session for 22 residents at the Fairview-Ridges Ebenezer assisted living facility in Burnsville in January.
Siddhee Anand Sahasrabudhe, PhD candidate in the Department of Experimental & Clinical Pharmacology who was among the top 30 applicants for the Sternfels Prize for drug safety discoveries. Her application was titled, “Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Modeling to Explore Various Eliglustat Doses to Improve Dosing Flexibility and Safety in Polypharmacy Scenarios.”
Emma Stockinger, P2, was interviewed for the story, “Interprofessional Student Training on COVID-19 Vaccine and Pandemic Planning.” The COVID-19 Vaccine and Pandemic Planning course featured in the story was co-created by Dr. Ann Philbrick.
The following individuals were 2022 Rho Chi Mu Chapter Research Day Poster Awardees:
- First place (tied)
  - Amber Porter, PGY-2 resident, St. Luke’s Hospital - “Assessment of patient-identified barriers to colorectal cancer screenings”
  - Yingbo Huang, graduate student in the Huang Lab in the Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology - “Sex differences in drug metabolism and transporter (DME 1) genes expression and associations with drug response”
- Third place
  - Kevin Agostinucci, PhD,postdoctoral research associate in the Zordoky Lab in the Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology - “Juvenile exposure to doxorubicin aggravates adult onset hypertension induced cardiac dysfunction”
- People’s Choice
  - Mohamed Dabour, PhD student in the Zordoky Lab in the Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology - “ The protective effect of canagliflozin against carfilzomib-induced endothelial toxicity”

Faculty and Staff News

Dr. Elizabeth Ambrose received recognition from students through the Center of Educational Innovation’s Thank a Teacher Program. Through this program, students convey how teachers have made a difference in their academic experience. A student commented, “I want to say thank you for making this class so interesting! Medicinal Chemistry was not a subject I was excited about and I was actually quite nervous about it, but I found myself looking forward to your lectures and your sidebars. Please keep doing this, as it was so great to have a fun spot amidst all of the stress of classes.”
Dr. Brian Isetts was selected to sit on the Technical Expert Panel (TEP) for the Measurement Gaps and Measure Development Priorities for the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) Program. Dr. Isetts also delivered a Minnesota Gerontological Association (MGS) webinar titled, “Effective Medication Self-Management,” at the Minnesota Gerontological Society. He was also featured in the story, “Grassroots, Volunteer-Led Dementia Friends Offers Interprofessional Learning Opportunities for Future Clinicians.”
Dr. Reena Kartha, was named a Rare Disease Difference Maker®by the Engage Health, a health research and market development firm that helps companies in the rare disease space. Dr. Kartha was also named to the Uplifting Athletes Scientific Advisory Board.
During Black History Month, Dr. Olihe Okoro was a contributing author to the Duluth News Tribune. Her work features profiles of Black residents living in the Duluth community.
Dr. Amy Pittenger was interviewed for the Academic Pharmacy Now story, “Meeting Mental Health Needs.” The story features the mental health education focus area led by Dr. Pittenger and Dr. Jody Lounsbery. Dr. Pittengerhas also received the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Graduate and Professional Education as part of the University of Minnesota 2021-2022 Distinguished Teaching Awards. Dr. Pittenger is also the recipient of the Vickie R. Courtney Award for Outstanding Service to University Senate Governance. This award goes to “individuals who have made a significant impact on University Senate governance, have demonstrated a commitment to collaboration in University Senate governance, and have served as an inspiration to others.”
Dr. Steve Schondelmeyer, as an ISPOR Founding Member, has been awarded lifetime society membership in recognition of his vision, leadership and contributions over the years to ISPOR. Dr. Schondelmeyer was also interviewed for the U.S. News & World Report story, “U.S. Lawmakers Seek Answers on ‘Troubling’ Drug Price Increases.” Dr. Schondelmeyer was also interviewed for the Bloomberg Businessweek story, “U.S. Drug Supply is Even More Reliant on India Than Thought.”
Dr. Wendy St. Peter was interviewed for the Pharmacy Practice News story, “Time to Switch to Race-Free eGFR Renal Test?” In addition, Dr. St. Peter is the co-author of an article featured in the Renal Physicians Association newsletter published in January 2022 titled, “Optimizing Patient Medication Management within Value-based Kidney Care Models.”
Dr. Tim Stratton is the co-author of a recent commentary in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, “The Importance of Teaching Ethics in Pharmacy Education.”
The Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences will dedicate its January 2023 issue to the work and career of Dr. Raj Suryanarayanan.

The Record Spring 2022

College of Pharmacy

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