OAKWOOD, VA (OCTOBER 15, 2025) – Appalachian College of Pharmacy (ACP) student, Patrick Sturgill, has been appointed to serve on the Kentucky Pharmacists Association (KPhA) public health committee.
Originally from Jenkins, Ky., Sturgill is a second-year pharmacy student, a member of the ACP class of 2027. At ACP, he is the immunization chair for the American Pharmacists Association student chapter; and vice president of the compounding club.
Sturgill joined KPhA as a student member and as a member, noticed enrollment opportunities for various KPhA boards and ultimately decided to apply for one of those.
“I applied to serve on the public health committee,” Sturgill said. “That is important to me so I can help advocate for my community any way I can. I was then notified a few months later that the president of KPhA accepted me to serve on the committee.”
The KPhA public health committee supports the KPhA in its efforts to advance the role of pharmacists and works to identify gaps in pharmacist education related to public and community health and recommends strategies to enhance training and engagement and through its work, aims to elevate the visibility and impact of pharmacists as accessible, frontline public health providers.
The committee works in collaboration with the Kentucky Department of Public Health and other partners to address critical public health priorities, including disease prevention and control, the opioid crisis, vaccination initiatives and emergency preparedness.
“With the opportunity to serve on the committee, I will be able to make partnerships across the state and help have a voice for various initiatives,” Sturgill said, adding he is also looking forward to assisting KPhA “to advance the role of the pharmacist in protecting and promoting public health across the state of Kentucky.”
“We are very proud of Patrick and the initiative he has shown by seeking to become a member of the Kentucky Pharmacists Association public health committee,” said ACP Provost and Dean Susan Mayhew. “The role of pharmacists as frontline public health providers is a critical one and as we train the next generation of pharmacists here at ACP, we are pleased that one of our students has been selected to work with others in the profession of pharmacy to continue to advance that role.”
In addition to his membership on the KPhA committee, Sturgill also serves on the Jenkins Independent Schools Board of Education in Jenkins, Ky., where he currently resides. He was commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel by Gov. Andy Beshear last year. The Kentucky Colonels designation is an honorary title awarded by the Governor of Kentucky to individuals “for their noteworthy accomplishments, contributions to society, or exceptional service to their community or state.”
Sturgill completed his pharmacy prerequisites and earned an Associate of Science Degree at Southeast Community and Technical College in Cumberland, KY. Sturgill chose to pursue his PharmD degree at ACP, he said, because it is so close to his hometown and because it is an accelerated three-year program.
Sturgill and his wife, Kayla, have two children, Leah, age eight; and Luca, age three.
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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