McWhorter School of Pharmacy
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Administration
Charles D. Sands, III, Fred E. McWhorter Dean and Professor
Michael G. Kendrach, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Professor
Susan P. Alverson, Associate Dean for Student and Alumni Affairs, Assistant Professor
Marshall E. Cates, Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, Professor
Paula A. Thompson, Interim Chair, Pharmacy Practice, Associate Professor
Amy E. Broeseker, Interim Chair, Pharmaceutical, Social and Administrative Sciences, Associate Professor
Michael D. Hogue, Director, Experiential Programs, Associate Professor
Maisha Kelly Freeman, Director, Global Drug Information Center, Associate Professor
Mary R. Monk-Tutor, Director of Assessment, Professor
Patricia B. Naro, Director of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience, Assistant Professor
History
The McWhorter School of Pharmacy of Samford University was established January 31, 1927, in Birmingham, Alabama as the Howard College Department of Pharmacy. The Department grew steadily and became the Division of Pharmacy in 1938. Designation as the Samford University School of Pharmacy occurred in 1965 when Howard College reorganized to become Samford University. In 1995, Samford University Trustees authorized naming the school the McWhorter School of Pharmacy in recognition of the generous support of alumnus R. Clayton McWhorter (‘55) and his family. In 2002, the School celebrated its 75th year of operation.
Mission and Vision
The mission of the Samford University McWhorter School of Pharmacy is to nurture and prepare persons within a Christian environment to be exemplary pharmacists and to improve health worldwide through innovative pharmacy practice, scholarship, and service.
The vision of the pharmacy school is to empower pharmacy professionals to improve health worldwide by exhibiting the highest standards of quality in education, scholarship, practice, and service, and to be a leader among schools of pharmacy in meeting the challenges of health care in the future.
The pharmacy school supports the Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) statement of a unified vision for the future of pharmacy practice that states that "Pharmacists will be the health care professionals responsible for providing patient care that ensures optimal medication therapy outcomes."
Curriculum Outcome
A doctor of pharmacy graduate from the McWhorter School of Pharmacy is one who is prepared to:
- Render exemplary pharmaceutical care
- Succeed in a postgraduate training or degree program
- Pursue life-long learning
- Advance the practice and profession of pharmacy
Ability-Based Outcomes
- Communication: The student will demonstrate effective written and verbal communication skills.
- Professionalism: The student will demonstrate professional behavior in all school-related activities.
- Evidence-Based Practice: The student will demonstrate competency in using drug information skills to promote evidence-based practice.
- Practice Management: The student will be able to apply management principles to the practice of pharmacy.
- Critical Thinking: The student will effectively evaluate information and critically think through issues to provide appropriate solutions to drug-related problems.
- Pharmaceutical Care: The student will exercise appropriate clinical judgments to provide optimal pharmaceutical care to patients with common disease states.
Accreditation
The McWhorter School of Pharmacy is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, 20 North Clark Street, Suite 2500, Chicago IL 60602, telephone (312) 664-3575. Web address: www.acpe-accredit.org.