PHARMACY PRACTICE UNIT:
Participation in AACP Mid-Career Recharge Program
芭乐视频 School of Pharmacy continued to support professional development of our Faculty and Staff. During June 2025, we were excited to support the participation of two senior faculty members, Drs. Anita Cleven and Eric Gilliam, in the Mid-Career Recharge Program through the American Association of College of Pharmacy (AACP) this academic year. In the previous year, Dr. Sarah White (Pharmacy Practice Unit) participated in the program, and the year before that, Dr. Fawzy Elbarbry (Pharmaceutical Sciences Unit) was supported to attend.
This June, the program kicked off with a three-day meeting held in Pittsburg, PA, where faculty from across the country gathered to explore the 鈥渘ext chapter鈥 in their academic careers and to be reinvigorated as they transition into new and expanding faculty and leadership roles.
One of the key elements of the program that has resonated with both Dr. Cleven and Dr. Gilliam is the concept of 鈥渏obcrafting.鈥 Dr. Cleven explained that jobcrafting is an invitation to 鈥渇ind what you like and turn your passions into what you have to do for the job.鈥 Through sessions exploring personal values and 1-on-1 coaching with experienced mentors, faculty members gain self-awareness about what they personally find fulfilling, and practice techniques like 鈥淐rucial Conversations鈥 to help them advocate for the inclusion of these values in their teaching, service, and scholarship at the School.
Last year, Dr. Sarah White completed the program and found the experience highly rewarding and appreciated the longitudinal work with her 鈥渟ynergy group,鈥 consisting of faculty from a number of institutions, as well as a program coach. Groups are allowed to develop their own culture and approach to meetings to allow more authentic connection.
Several elements of the program are already contributing to student learning in the classroom and on rotations. Dr. Cleven shared many of the activities and assessments with her Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) student and Dr. Gilliam has used some of the activities in the Personal and Professional Development course to help P1 and P1A PharmD students enrolled in our 3- and 5-year pathways expand their own self-awareness.
We sincerely appreciate these faculty and other faculty in both of our units for their continued effort to grow and develop professionally and are pleased to have been able to support their participation in this year鈥檚 AACP Mid-Career Recharge program.
PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES UNIT:
Innovative Toxicology Research
Dr. Brendan Stamper with alumni of the 芭乐视频 School of Pharmacy, including Dr. Madeline Fry, who worked as a student researcher on this project while in pharmacy school, uncovered new insights into how the herbicide diquat causes liver damage, findings that could inform future antidote development. Using a , their team identified over thousands of genes altered by diquat exposure and pinpointed the MAPK signaling pathway as a key player in the toxic response. The study, which leveraged publicly available genomic datasets, exemplifies Pacific鈥檚 commitment to innovative, student-driven research.
Advancing Global Health Through Green Nanotechnology
A collaborative review co-authored by Jonathan Taylor, a senior research assistant within the pharmaceutical sciences unit and Dr. Samira Elikaee, a former postdoctoral fellow within the school of pharmacy, and entitled 鈥,鈥 examined 50 studies exploring plant- and microbe-based 鈥済reen鈥 nanoparticles as safer, cost-effective treatments for Leishmania infections. The review, which includes Drs. Sigrid Roberts and Nicola Carter, as coauthors, as well as Dr. Kristina Dwarka, a former student researcher in the Carter laboratory and School of Pharmacy alum, highlights silver and selenium nanoparticles as especially promising and paves the way for the development of more sustainable and accessible therapies for this devastating neglected tropical disease, which afflicts millions of people worldwide.
Expert Voices in Public Health
Faculty from the pharmaceutical sciences unit provided expert commentary for the media regarding changes in public health guidelines, helping to enhance the visibility of the School of Pharmacy. Dr. Amber Buhler was interviewed by a local news station regarding the potential impacts of a temporary change in FDA COVID vaccine guidance that restricted approval to medically vulnerable populations, and discussed the impacts on accessibility and insurance coverage. In late September, Dr. Brendan Stamper provided expert toxicology commentary in interviews with a local radio station and the Oregon Regional News Network, which syndicates news stories statewide. His insights helped provide perspective on a White House announcement reporting a link between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and autism, further amplifying Pacific鈥檚 role as a leader in evidence-based public health communication.
Mentorship and Student Achievement
The Pharmaceutical Sciences unit proudly celebrates the accomplishments of our students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Both of our standalone second year master鈥檚 students successfully passed their General Thesis Exam, marking a major milestone in their graduate training and readiness for graduation in 2026. This achievement reflects their strong foundation in scientific inquiry, analytical thinking, and research readiness, as well as the dedicated faculty mentorship that is guiding them toward the completion of their thesis work.
Undergraduate students who participated in the ASPET Summer Undergraduate Research Fellow (SURF) program in June-July 2025, supported through an award to the School of Pharmacy and matching support of the School itself, also showcased their work at two recent research symposia; the Pacific Undergraduate Research Conference and the Murdock Undergraduate Research Conference in Vancouver, WA. A special congratulations to Ella Boyer, mentored by Dr. Michael Espiritu, who received the Outstanding Poster Award in Physical Sciences at the Pacific Undergraduate Research Conference. Her accomplishment, as well as the discoveries of the other students, reflect the strength of our undergraduate research training, as well as the commitment of our faculty mentors to promoting student success and achievement through research.
-Written by:
Ryan Gibbard, PharmD, RPh, BCPS | Chair of Pharmacy Practice & Associate Professor | School of Pharmacy
Nicola Carter, PhD | Chair of Pharmaceutical Sciences & Associate Professor | School of Pharmacy