Alumnus Bob Blouin to Become Provost of UNC at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has named Robert “Bob” Blouin (Class of 1978) longtime dean of the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, to serve as Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor of the University
Blouin, the Vaughn and Nancy Bryson Distinguished Professor, is a well-respected educator, researcher, innovator and administrator across UNC’s campus and throughout higher education.
“I am honored to be the University’s next provost and to continue forward with the important work already underway for the Blueprint for Next and the launch of our capital campaign, among other priorities,” Blouin said. “I hope that I can apply what we’ve learned at the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy in finding creative ways to accelerate innovation in education and research.”
Before heading to Carolina, Blouin completed his PharmD and residency at University of Kentucky and was a faculty member and administrator at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy for 25 years. Blouin last served as professor and associate dean for research and graduate education from 1997 to 2003 at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy.
His responsibilities as associate dean included overseeing the development and expansion of the Center for Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technology, a multimillion-dollar cGMP drug formulation and manufacturing facility. As the executive director of the Office for Economic Development and Innovations Management, he served as the College of Pharmacy representative on all issues external to the University of Kentucky and those relating to economic development of the pharmaceutical sciences. He represented the college on several statewide biotechnology initiatives and has worked to advance faculty-based intellectual property.
We wish to remember and honor those who inhabited this Commonwealth before the arrival of the Europeans. Briefly occupying these lands were the Osage, Wyndott tribe, and Miami peoples. The Adena and Hopewell peoples, who are recognized by the naming of the time period in which they resided here, were here more permanently. Some of their mounds remain in the Lexington area, including at UK’s Adena Park.
In more recent years, the Cherokee occupied southeast Kentucky, the Yuchi southwest Kentucky, the Chickasaw extreme western Kentucky and the Shawnee central Kentucky including what is now the city of Lexington. The Shawnee left when colonization pushed through the Appalachian Mountains. Lower Shawnee Town ceremonial grounds are still visible in Greenup County.
We honor the first inhabitants who were here, respect their culture, and acknowledge the presence of their descendants who are here today in all walks of life including fellow pharmacists and healthcare professionals.