Our Top 23 of 2023
- Been There, Done That, Got the Challenge Coin
Graduation is always a special day, and this year was no different as we recognized our newest graduates at the commencement ceremony in May. Special shoutout to our December graduates from the Ph.D. program, who participated in the University’s commencement ceremony at Rupp Arena.
We are so proud to have you carry on the UKCOP legacy and watch you succeed in your chosen paths.
- Eight More Years
We hosted a successful reaccreditation site visit by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE). This positions the College favorably for full reaccreditation with an 8-year term!
- White Coat Secured
A time-honored tradition of welcoming the newest members of our pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences programs into the community with the White Coat Ceremony. All white coats were generously provided by our alumni and friends.
- Hip, Hip! Hooray!
Three cheers for our newly promoted faculty: Craig Beavers, Eric Johnson, Hannah Johnson, and Vince Venditto!
- Big Blue's New Crew
Although we bid goodbye to some beloved employees, we were fortunate to welcome many new faces to the TODD building. Among them are exciting junior faculty hires. Get to know them here and here.
- So Long, Sweet Friends
Jim Pauly and Pat McNamara, two legendary professors from the Pharmaceutical Sciences Department, retired from UKCOP after decades of service to the profession.
- Our Old Kentucky Home
Good food, good friends, a 50th reunion dinner, and a jam session with Ken Record’s band during Homecoming Weekend? Sign. Us. Up.
- The Parker Legacy
José O. Rivera became the first Latino recipient of the Paul F. Parker Award. ¡Felicidades!
- Welcome to the Hotel California
Midyear on the West Coast: We came, we presented, we walked a million steps. We celebrated award winners, hung out with old and new friends, and survived a (minor) earthquake—it’s a long story.
- The Dynamic Duo
Jeff Cain and Frank Romanelli won AACP's Rufus A. Lyman Award. The award recognizes the best paper published in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education (AJPE) the previous year. Mic drop.
- Discovering What Lies #BeyondTheScript
We secured $65.1M in collaborative funding during the ‘22-‘23 fiscal year, maintaining a #6 ranking in funding per PI. Learn more in our impact report.
- Match Madness
Our beloved Cats may be stuck in a Sweet 16 drought, but PharmD students brought the Match Madness wins to UKCOP with an 86% PGY-1 match rate for the class of 2023, making us the #8 school in the country for most matches.
- You're A Winner, Baby
Talk about a power duo. The legendary Trish Freeman was this year’s Bowl of Hygeia recipient, while rising star Kyle Bryan took home the Pharmacist of the Year award from the Kentucky Pharmacists Association.
- Madam President
Our own Chief Practice Officer, Brooke Hudspeth, was sworn in as President of the Kentucky Pharmacists Association. Who run the world? Women pharmacists, of course.
- ADOPTing New Strategies
Doug Oyler wants providers to know that there is indeed a place for opioid-based pain management. But understanding why and when to use them could save lives.
- Look At These Distinguished Gentlemen
Five outstanding preceptors and two alumni were honored for their professional achievements during the Hall of Distinguished Alumni and Preceptors annual celebration.
Learn more about our preceptor inductees and alumni inductees.
- Road Trip
Owensboro. Morehead. Bowling Green. Ashland. We wanted to meet you where you are and discuss the pharmacy issues affecting your community. So, Dean Guy and the crew loaded up and did just that during our Dean's Tour stops. Keep an eye out for more of our stops in 2024, coming to a city near you.
- Everything is Science
Almost 400 Lexingtonians attended talks at local pubs and restaurants to learn how science affects our everyday lives and can be found everywhere, not just in the research labs.
- Win. Place. Show.
Didn’t get a chance to meet us on the Hill for the annual UKCOP tailgate? Save the date for April 20, 2024. You can bet on having a great time, but we can’t guarantee you’ll win anything else.
- This Is #JustTheBeginning
During the historic Kentucky CAN fundraising campaign, UKCOP received an outstanding $31.34 million in donations and pledged support, surpassing our initial $20 million campaign goal by 56%.
- Houston, We're Ready to Launch
We unveiled a revamped Center for the Advancement of Pharmacy Practice and launched the new Continuing Professional Development Office to better serve our alums and preceptors.
- We Mean Business
UKCOP students can do it all. Three of our pharmacy students—William Burkhart, Abigail Carver, and Brian Sato—participated in the Gatton College of Business and Economics CEO Showdown. Their team, the CEO Cats, walked away with a grand prize of $10,000!
- PharmaDogs
UKCOP’s newest degree program launched, promising an innovative partnership to teach dogs to deliver life-saving medication to patients.
…Just kidding. It was our silly little annual April Fool’s prank. But did hundreds of people and a local reporter fall for it? Yes. Yes, they did.
Our job here is done.
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.