OAKWOOD, VA (May 30, 2025) – Students, faculty, staff and preceptors at the Appalachian College of Pharmacy (ACP) were recently recognized for their achievements during awards day ceremonies at the college.
“The awards we present annually to students recognize their achievements and are very well-deserved,” said ACP Provost and Dean Susan Mayhew. “We are proud of each of them for their dedication to learning and to becoming the best pharmacists they can be as they pursue their Doctor of Pharmacy degrees. We are also proud of our faculty, staff and preceptors for their achievements and take great pride in recognizing them as well.”
Awards presented at the 2025 awards ceremony were as follows:
The Dean’s Award: Shobhit Sood. The Dean’s Award recognizes a student’s outstanding achievement and unselfish devotion to his or her class, the college and the profession. The recipient must have exemplified exceptional service and commitment to the profession academically; through involvement in professional/student organizations; and through extracurricular service learning opportunities.
Academic Excellence: Henrietta Annor. The academic excellence award recognizes excellence in academics and professional motivation in the profession of pharmacy. The recipient must have exemplified exceptional scholastic achievement both inside and outside the classroom. The Pharmacy Excellence Award includes academic excellence and other creative activities, such as community involvement linked to the student’s academic studies.
Professionalism: Kaitlyn Cook. The professionalism award recognizes the ideals of professionalism and excellence in patient care in all aspects of the recipient’s academic pharmacy career. The recipient demonstrates a strong commitment and dedication to the highest ideals of professionalism in the practice of pharmacy; and exemplifies exceptional service and commitment to the profession academically, through involvement in professional/student organizations and within the community.
Distinguished Service: Mona Patel. The distinguished service award recognizes a student who demonstrates academic excellence, leadership and outstanding service commitment to the college and greater community.
Outstanding Leadership: Alborz Fatheddin. The outstanding leadership award recognizes a student who has exemplified outstanding leadership qualities and demonstrated interest in either community pharmacy or health system pharmacy practice. The recipient of the leadership award is actively involved and takes on a leadership role in various student and professional organizations as well as extracurricular service learning activities within the community. The recipient exemplifies exceptional leadership qualities and commitment to the college of pharmacy as well as the profession of pharmacy.
Community Service: Blessing Opanuga. The recipient of the community service award exemplifies outstanding service through the ACP Pharmacists in Community Service (PICS) program.
Wolters Kluwer Clinical Drug Information Award of Excellence in Clinical Communication: Abanoab Masry. The Wolters Kluwer award is given to a member of the graduating class who is in the top 25 percent of their class academically and who possesses superior verbal and written clinical communication skills.
Merck Award: Basem Abdelhamed. The Merck award is given to the student who has shown outstanding proficiency in medicinal chemistry.
Viatris Excellence Award: Emily Lester. The Viatris award is given to a graduating senior in the top 25 percent of his or her class academically, demonstrating high professional motivation and the intent to enter into practice upon graduation.
VSHP Excellence Award and ASHP Student Award: Elizabeth Mischel. The VSHP award is given to a student who has demonstrated excellence in patient care activities in health system pharmacy practice; demonstrated an interest in pharmacy practice in health-system pharmacy (e.g. hospital, home care, managed care, long term care) through work experiences, didactic/experiential experiences, or both; and demonstrated intent to pursue a career in health system pharmacy upon graduation. The ASHP award is presented annually to the outgoing president of the student chapter of ASHP.
VPhA Research and Foundation Student Award: Caleb Damron. The VPhA award is a competitive award presented annually to one student from each school of pharmacy in Virginia. Nominated students must have achieved above average scholastic results (top 25 percent of his or her class academically); have demonstrated the ideals of professionalism and excellence in patient care in all aspects of his/her academic pharmacy career; have demonstrated exceptional service and commitment to the profession of pharmacy through involvement in professional organizations and other extracurricular learning opportunities; intend to apply their knowledge of patient care to achieve better outcomes of drug therapy and health care delivery as a practitioner of pharmaceutical care upon graduation; and be a member of the student organization at their school.
Highest GPA: Abanoab Masry and Shobit Sood.
Faculty, staff and preceptor awards were also presented as follows:
Academic Excellence in Clinical Teaching and the Above and Beyond Award: Dr. Kris Preston. The academic excellence in clinical teaching award is designed to recognize an outstanding faculty member who has had a positive impact on students’ clinical education; who is highly knowledgeable and intellectually rigorous; is deeply committed to teaching students; is skilled in interacting with students and promoting learning; and who has had a positive and lasting impact on students. The above and beyond award recognizes a faculty member who has gone “above and beyond” in providing academic support, tutoring, career counseling or mentoring.
Outstanding Science Teaching: Dr. Ingo Engels. The award recognizes a full-time regular science faculty member for outstanding achievement in the area of teaching. The recipient utilizes approaches to teaching that influence, motivate and inspire students to learn; develops curricula and resources that reflect a command of the field; approaches assessment and feedback which foster independent learning; respects and supports the development of students as individuals; and conducts scholarly activities influencing and enhancing learning and teaching.
Administrative Staff Member of the Year: Joshua Snead. The award recognizes a staff member who best demonstrates the qualities of exceptional service and commitment to the college.
Student Organization Advisor of the Year and ACP Preceptor of Excellence Award: Dr. Randall Cole. The student organization advisor of the year award is nominated by the student and is given to the ACP faculty member of a recognized ACP Student Organization who best fulfills the ideals of a student mentor and organization advisor in the professional development of student pharmacists. The preceptor of excellence award, voted on by third year students, recognizes an outstanding preceptor amongst ACP faculty who has had a positive impact on students’ experiential program.
ACP Preceptor of the Year: Dr. Sommer Mintz. The preceptor of the year award is designed to recognize outstanding preceptors who have had a positive impact on students’ experiential education.
The Appalachian College of Pharmacy is the only three-year Doctor of Pharmacy program in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Founded in 2003, the college accepted its first students in 2005. It is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Its mission is to cultivate a learning community committed to education, community outreach and the professional development of pharmacists. Its graduate pharmacists are now practicing throughout the United States.
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