Garrett Davidson is valedictorian for the 2012 Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences class and graduates as a Pharmacology/Toxicology major with minors in Biology and Chemistry.  In addition to being on the Dean’s List, Garrett has earned the President’s Award, the Rocket Gold Scholarship and the Theta Chi Scholar of the Year Award for 2010.

Garrett is actively involved in community and university organizations as treasurer and former first and second guard for Theta Chi Fraternity and a member of the Student National Pharmaceutical Association. He volunteers at The University of Toledo Medical Center and at Josina Lott, where he works with adults with developmental disabilities. He also volunteered at The Eagle’s Club and is the assistant baseball coach Brunswick Youth Sports.

Following graduation, Garrett plans to seek admission to medical school and to eventually become a physician.

Kelli Cole, Elizabeth Fragapane, Alicia Petrarca, and Marisa Sochacki are valedictorians of the 2012 Doctor of Pharmacy class.  In addition to excelling in their academic studies, all four Doctor of Pharmacy valedictorians have shown leadership through their participation in student and professional organizations and activities.

Kelli Cole is the recipient of the Toledo Academy of Pharmacy Scholarship, the Naomi B. and Donald C. Merrell Scholarship, the Gilbert and Janiece Siegel Scholarship, the Merck and Company Award, the Dana F. Fitzsimmons Pharmacy Scholarship, the Charles Schifman Memorial Pharmacy Scholarship, the Dean George Baker Memorial Pharmacy Scholarship, the University of Toledo Tower Excellence Scholarship and the Beyer Sibling Scholarship.

She is a member of the American Pharmacists Association – Academy of Student Pharmacists and Student Society of Health-System Pharmacists, in which she served as vice president from 2010-2011.  Kelli is also a member of Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society and the Pharmacy Student Council as well as the Mortar Board National Honor Society.  Her other campus activities include being part of the Honors program, serving in the Sylvania Lions Volunteer Club and membership in The University of Toledo Dance Team, Rocket Marching Band and Varsity Band. Kelli was also a tutor for the Learning Enhancement Center and a teaching assistant in the Drug Information Lab.

Elizabeth Fragapane has been on the Dean’s list each semester since fall 2006. She is a recipient of the Towers of Excellence Scholarship.

Following graduation, Elizabeth will practice pharmacy with Discount Drug Mart in the Dayton area.

Alicia Petrarca is a member of the American Pharmacists Association – Academy of Student Pharmacists, in which she has served as the organization’s secretary and Student Political Advocacy Network Liaison as well as the Chapter Member of the Year in 2011. Alicia’s honors and awards include membership in Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society. She has earned the Gilbert and Janiece Siegel Leadership Scholarship, the Merck and Company Award, the Phi Kappa Phi 2009 Undergraduate Award of Excellence Scholarship, and the CRC Press Chemistry Achievement Award. She has also been on the President’s and Dean’s lists since 2006.

Alicia has had her research published in the VAAAHS Drug Bulletin and the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacists, in addition to numerous presentations at The University of Toledo and The University of Toledo Medical Center.

Marisa Sochacki’s honors include the President’s List, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation’s Renewal Scholarship, the Wal-Mart Pharmacy Scholarship, the Marjorie Neal Wilson Scholarship, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores Foundation’s Taro Research Foundation Scholarship, the Gilbert and Janiece Siegel Scholarship, the Tower of Excellence Award, and the National Rocket Award.

Marisa has served as secretary of Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society and was a founding board member of the Hearts and Hands of Heroes nonprofit organization. She is a Pharmacy Ambassador and a member of the American Pharmacists Association – Academy of Student Pharmacists as well as Zakuska, Alpha Phi Omega and Big Brother Big Sister of Northwestern Ohio. Marisa participated in four international mission trips and two alternative spring breaks volunteering for hurricane relief and poverty relief.

After graduation, Marisa will complete a PGY1 Pharmacy Practice residency at Battle Creek Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Steven Lombardo, BSPS 2011, is the first Fulbright scholar in the 107-year history of the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Mr. Lombardo was the valedictorian of his graduating class and has a significant interest in research throughout his undergraduate career. Mr. Lombardo, who studied pharmacology and toxicology, is now conducting a year of study with Dr. Mary Collins of the Faculty of Pharmacy at The University of Sydney, Australia. Subsequently, Mr. Lombardo will pursue a PhD in neuroscience at Wake Forest University. Read more

Dr. David Bright

David Bright, PharmD ‘08, is the recipient of the 2012 American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Distinguished New Practitioner Award. According to APhA, the Distinguished New Practitioner Award “ recognizes a new practitioner, within his/her first five years of practice, who has demonstrated distinctive achievements in mentorship, service and commitment to the profession of pharmacy.”

After completing the PharmD program at UT, Dr. Bright  completed UT’s Kroger community residency program in 2009.

Following his residency, Dr. Bright joined the faculty of Ohio Northern University.

Pharmacy camp is a three-night, four-day camp that takes place at The University of Toledo each summer. The camp is open to high school students in the Class of 2013 who demonstrate strong academic skills and an interest in pharmacy or the pharmaceutical sciences.

This summer, the dates for Pharmacy camp will be June 17-20, 2012 and June 24-27, 2012. The online application will be available February 1, 2012, and the application deadline is April 4, 2012.

P4 students Caitlin Steward, Andrew Wash, Rachel Rocha, and Andrea Smith

Members of UT’s chapter of the Student Society of Health-System Pharmacists (SSHP) attended the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) mid-year meeting, at which they presented a poster in the Student Society Showcase. The poster describes Operation Immunization, a student-run community immunization program. Also at the meeting, P4 students Kelli Cole and Michelle Piel represented UT in the National Skills Competition.

Dear alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends of the College,

Reflecting on the past year, one realizes the great strength of the people, programs and legacy of the college. As we enter 2012, I would like to highlight our priorities, strengths and commitment to the education of future generations of pharmacy professionals.

You will notice that our college’s name has been modified, now more effectively conveying our comprehensive approach to the achievement of our mission. The comprehensive nature of the college is reflected by the name College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

Our restructured BSPS Pharmacy and Healthcare Administration curriculum has been enthusiastically received by our students and faculty, and our revised PharmD curriculum has entered its second year.

Based on pass rates and tuition and fee statistics, a study by Southwest Oklahoma State University College of Pharmacy has ranked our college eighth in the nation for education and value among peer institutions.  Read more

I attended the Neuroscience conference organized by the Society for Neuroscience in November 2011. It was an enlightening experience for me as I was amidst the entire spectrum of groundbreaking neuroscience research. It was fascinating to witness the power of the common cause of sharing scientific work bridge gaps of region and culture. It was during this conference that I truly soaked in the impact of good scientific writing. That written communication is the currency with which the entire research community functions is a truism we are all aware of; but I caught a glimpse of scientific writing as a genre in itself with its own set of rules and idiosyncrasies at the meeting.

As students, formal writing is interlaced into our coursework in the form of term papers, lab reports, examinations or even emails, for that matter. It is also the frequent cause of distress mainly because of the rigidity of the written word; it doesn’t afford the flexibility of the spoken word or an informal writeup. Scientific writing is formal writing taken to the graduate level. Not only does the language not allow a lot of wiggle room, it is vital that it convey the science in its exact sense. It is not an art but a skill that needs to be learnt with painstaking diligence. As with learning any skill, one needs to gradually master the technique unique to scientific writing.

In my experience, I have found the tense and the choice of pronoun to be the key to maintaining the tautness of a scientific writeup. In essence, these factors are important in any style of writing; however, it is a lot more tempting but disastrous to play around with them in a scientific setup. Most scientific literature is written in the third person, in the past tense, which sets the formal tone of the composition. This brings us to another crucial element of writing-the voice. Passive voice is the bane of all scientific writing as it    makes the already stiff narrative dreary. Active voice keeps the narrative fresh and is the sole weapon that can prevent the reader from dozing off midway. Once the voice is taken care of, we need to look at the most important ingredient of our writeup-words. One of the advantages of scientific writing is that it requires very little creativity in terms of word choice. An important caveat is that it also has very low tolerance towards verbose language. It is essential that words are kept to the absolute minimum; anything superfluous takes away from the seriousness of the topic and makes reading a chore. Having said that, I wrap up my article with the hope that some of you will find my insights about scientific writing useful!

Wishing you all a very happy 2012!

Dr. Tom Kvale of Undergraduate Research with Dr. Fred Williams

At the Fourth Annual Posters at the Capitol: Undergraduate Research in Northwest Ohio, the University of Toledo chapter of Sigma Xi, the scientific research society, received an award for distinguished performance.  Award criteria focus on the impact of a specific program on the institution or community (i.e., the size and diversity of the audience, outreach and exposure) and the level of innovation or initiative (uniqueness of program, creative use of resources).  The Program Award recognizes initiatives that address the four major issues at the foundation of the Society’s mission: honor in science and engineering, science education, science policy and the public understanding of science.

Pharmacology associate professor, Dr. Fred Williams, is the president of the UT chapter of Sigma Xi. Sigma Xi is committed to supporting the research enterprise, and the strength of this organization comes from the strong foundation of 522 chapter-based programs.   UT is one of seven chapters to receive the Chapter Program Awards recognition this year.  “The grassroots nature of the Society allows us to ‘think globally and act locally.’ In a world increasingly impacted by science and technology, the need for informed science leadership in our communities and neighborhoods is great,” said Cristina Gouin-Paul, chair, Sigma Xi Committee on Qualifications and Membership.  “Your award-winning chapter is helping to create that kind of leadership, and we hope you feel a part of that success and we appreciate the time and effort your chapter put in to your chapter and program.”

Posters at the Capitol is an annual event where undergraduate students from across Northwest Ohio display their research at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. In 2011, more than 50 students from The University of Toledo, Bowling Green State University, The University of Findlay, Ohio Northern University and Heidelberg University participated. Posters at the Capitol is led by UT’s Office of Undergraduate Research and has been supported by UT’s chapter of Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Society since the inception of the events in 2008.

“Posters at the Capitol provides an opportunity for undergraduate students from northwest Ohio to showcase their research,” said Dr. Thomas Kvale, director of the UT Office of Undergraduate Research. “This event is designed for students to become more involved with their elected officials and thank them for their support and for the representatives and senators to learn more about the students’ research and discoveries on a one-on-one basis.”  Two students were recognized in the Ohio Assembly during the 2011 event.

All award-winning chapters were honored during the Society’s Annual Meeting in November in Raleigh, North Carolina.

UT’s Sigma Xi Chapter was established in 1955, a UT student research symposium commenced in 1980, and undergraduate researchers began presenting in 2002. The national Sigma Xi organization celebrates its 125-year anniversary this year.