Sharks RX Spring 2015 Magazine

2 © LASTING IMPRESSIONS W elcome to the inaugural edition of NSU Sharks Rx , our newmagazine for alumni, students, employees, and friends of the Nova Southeastern University College of Pharmacy! We look forward to providing you with the latest news from the college, including highlights of our alumni, updates on research, and achievements of our students and faculty and staff members. As you read this publication, I hope you feel the same pride in our college that I do, and that you, too, are awed by the amazing accomplishments of our graduates, faculty members, and students. As dean, one of my primary goals is to engage more closely with our alumni. I want all of our graduates to feel a sense of connection in their alma mater and a sense of belonging within our alumni community. To this end, we will hold a range of functions, continuing education seminars, and networking events to give alumni the opportunity to reconnect with the college, the faculty, and former classmates. Our alumni play a vital role in helping the college achieve its mission by holding leadership positions in the pharmacy community and by supporting the college at our events or assisting with the education of our students. I would also like to take this time to update you on two important initiatives within the college: accreditation and strategic planning. Since my appointment as dean, we have spent many long hours preparing for our recent Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) accreditation. The confidence we feel in the edu- cation we offer our students and the wonderful work done by faculty and staff members were verified by the recent decision of the ACPE Board of Directors to award the NSUCollege of Pharmacy a full eight-year accreditation term (until 2023)! Special thanks to Sandra Benavides, Pharm.D., our self-study chair, who worked tirelessly to ensure a complete and accurate narrative and a seamless on-site visit. We could not have achieved this level of excellence without the participation of all of our faculty, administration, support staff, students, and alumni. Our next step is to develop a strategic plan, focusing on our strengths of entre- preneurship, courage, and innovation, to continue the college’s upward trajectory. We are currently interviewing a number of our stakeholders as we work on a process entitled “Achieving our Shared Legacy” to identify our vision and develop a list of strategic initiatives to move us forward. We are energized as we identify new ways to provide our students with an education and entrepreneurial opportunities to prepare them for the future practice of pharmacy. I look forward to keeping in touch with everyone through NSU Sharks Rx and at our upcoming events. Please, send us your feedback, and submit your news for our alumni update section. Thank you for being a part of NSU’s College of Pharmacy. Go Sharks! Fins Up! Lisa Deziel, Pharm.D., Ph.D. Dean, College of Pharmacy Nova Southeastern University NSU Sharks Rx is produced by NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY College of Pharmacy 3200 South University Drive Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33328-2018 with additional campuses in Palm Beach, Florida, and San Juan, Puerto Rico COLLEGE OF PHARMACY Lisa Deziel , Pharm.D., Ph.D. Dean, College of Pharmacy PALM BEACH REGIONAL CAMPUS Nile Khanfar , Ph.D., M.B.A. Assistant Dean, Associate Professor PUERTO RICO REGIONAL CAMPUS Blanca Ortiz , Pharm.D. Assistant Dean, Assistant Professor Mislady (Millie) A. Vélez , M.S. Director, Alumni Development and Professional Affairs Dawn E. DaCosta , M.A. Director, Academic Support Services DEAN’S ADVISORY BOARD Anthony Alfonso, Richard Ashworth, Armando Bardisa, Giselle Cheminand, James L. Dettore, Geronimos Dimitretos, Ramón (Ray) Flores, Mitchell Ghen, Jesus Gil, Patrick Hawthorne, Michael Kaplan, Taeho Oh, Hugo Perez, Raúl Rodríguez-Font, Reinaldo Santamarta, Jim Springer, Gerald W. B. Weber MANAGING EDITOR Oline H. Cogdill ART DIRECTOR Susan Tischenkel-Hayward , Associate Director/ Senior Graphic Designer, Office of Publications OFFICE OF PUBLICATIONS Ron Ryan , Director Sheryl Koral , University Editor Carol Reynolds-Srot , Associate Editor/Copywriter Roberta Harris , Graphic Production Manager Send NSU Sharks Rx your emails and alumni news. Send to either Mislady (Millie) Vélez, mislady@nova .edu ,orDawnDaCosta, dacostad@nova.edu , attheDavie campus; Nile Khanfar, khanfar@nova.edu , at the Palm Beach Regional Campus; or Blanca Ortiz, blortiz@nova .edu , at the Puerto Rico Regional Campus. Nova Southeastern University is accredited by the South- ern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award associate’s, baccalaureate, master’s, educational specialist, doctorate, and profes- sional degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of Nova Southeastern University. Nova Southeastern University admits students of any race, color, sex, age, nondisqualifying disability, religion or creed, sexual orientation, or national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school, and does not discriminate in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholar- ship and loan programs, and athletic and other school- administered programs. 01-112-15SAT F O L L O W N S U