Cain, Romanelli Receive AACP Rufus A. Lyman Award

Arlington, Va. — The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy today announced the recipients of its top awards, which recognize six individuals, one institution and one scholarly paper, for their outstanding contributions made to pharmacy education, research, patient outcomes, community service and academic publishing. Recipients will be honored at AACP’s Annual Meeting, Pharmacy Education 2023, July 22-25, in Aurora, Colorado.

Recipients

• Adam M. Persky, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will receive the Robert K. Chalmers Distinguished Pharmacy Educator Award recognizing his outstanding achievements as an educator and mentor, his innovations in the classroom, and his overall impact on pharmacy education and the profession.
• Sandra Kane-Gill, Pharm.D., of the University of Pittsburgh, will receive the Paul R. Dawson Award for Excellence in Patient Care Research recognizing her as a highly accomplished researcher and academic leader in the area of medication safety and critical care.
• Jeffrey Aubé, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will receive the Volwiler Research Achievement Award for his research focused on the development of high quality and appropriately validated chemical probes and drug candidates across numerous therapeutic areas, including neuroscience, cancer, and tuberculosis/anti-infectives.
• Bruce Berger, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Auburn University and President, Berger Consulting, LLC, will receive the Distinguished Service Award for his work to improve communication between healthcare professionals and patients, and his significant contributions in the areas of communication apprehension and motivational interviewing.
• “Deficiencies of Traditional Grading Systems and Recommendations for the Future” by Jeff Cain. Ed.D., of the University of Kentucky; Melissa S. Medina, Ed.D., of the University of Oklahoma; Frank Romanelli, Pharm.D., of the University of Kentucky; and, Adam M. Persky, Ph.D., of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 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 Ohio State University College of Pharmacy will receive the Lawrence C. Weaver Transformative Community Service Award for its commitment to addressing unmet community needs through education, practice and research.
• Neal J. Benedict, Pharm.D., of the University of Pittsburgh, and Stuart T. Haines, Pharm.D., of the University of Mississippi, have been named the 2023 Distinguished Teaching Scholars recognizing their excellence in scholarly teaching and the scholarship of teaching and learning. 

“The 2023 recipients of AACP’s top awards represent the best of teaching, research, service and scholarly publishing in academic pharmacy,” said AACP Executive Vice President and CEO Lee Vermeulen, B.S.Pharm., M.S., FCCP, FFIP. “Each has made outstanding contributions to their field, and I look forward to recognizing them at Pharmacy Education 2023.”

The recipients of AACP’s awards are at the forefront of healthcare professions education and through their work are advancing pharmacy innovation, enhancing patient care and adding value to the healthcare system. 

AACP will present the Chalmers, Weaver and Distinguished Teaching Scholar Awards during the Opening General Session on Sunday, July 23. The Dawson and Volwiler Awards will be presented during the Research, Health Science and Policy in Academic Pharmacy session on Monday, July 24, and the Distinguished Service Award and the Rufus A. Lyman Award will be presented during the Tuesday Luncheon on July 25.