VCU chapter of SNPhA shines on national level
The VCU chapter of the Student National Pharmaceutical Association acquitted itself admirably during SNPhA’s 2014 National Convention in Arlington. The theme of the 41st annual meeting was “A.C.T. — Advance to Achieve. Collaborate to Connect. Teach to Transform.”
“VCU had a tremendous presence at the conference,” reported Kisha Grigsby, chapter president. Fourteen student members and faculty advisor Leticia “Tish” Moczygemba attended the July convention.
School of Pharmacy alumna Rebecca Snead (B.S. ’85) served as keynote speaker. She is executive vice president and CEO of the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations.
SOP student Karanita Fuller was appointed to national office as Remember the Ribbon Chair and will serve on SNPhA’s National Executive Board. Officers are elected by SNPhA’s national president.
Two students, Nellie Jafari and Ben Iredell, were awarded scholarships. Jafari received a $3,000 Walgreens Diversity Advancement Award. She also was a finalist for the SNPhA-Rite Aid Community Leader of the Year Award, which included $250 and meeting stipend and registration. Iredell received the National Pharmaceutical Association Foundation-Rite Aid Scholarship Award for $2,000.
“Pooja Kirpekar did a phenomenal job representing our school as our chapter delegate,” said Grigsby. “She was poised and well-spoken, and both of the resolutions submitted by VCU SNPhA were passed by the House of Delegates.” Grigsby also thanked student Sarah Barden for contributing the resolutions.
Fuller, Grigsby, SNPhA chapter president-elect Kalyann Kauv and Timothy Pierce were selected to participate in a Rite Aid leadership workshop. Iredell, Han Le, Samson Lee, Jaeau Obcemea and Sunny Singh were selected for a Target leadership workshop. And Obcemea and Singh represented VCU in the National Conference Clinical Skills Competition.
Jafari and Obcemea presented the chapter’s Walmart/Sam’s Club Prescription for Service project, an interprofessional clinic for patient assessment at Richmond’s Center for High Blood Pressure. Last winter, their Prescription for Service Scholarship Competition video garnered the chapter a first place in SNPhA’s Region 1 and $2,500 to go toward the project.
“Last but not least,” as Grigsby noted, the VCU chapter’s Smoking Cessation event at VCU Cares was detailed in an issue of The Signatura, SNPha’s national newsletter. “Only a handful out of the 85 chapters were included in the publication,” she added.
It’s been a busy year for the VCU chapter of SNPhA, which also played host to more than 350 pharmacy students during the Regions I and II Meeting in February.
A student affiliate of the National Pharmaceutical Association, SNPhA is an educational and service organization for students who are concerned about pharmacy issues, professional development and minority representation in pharmacy and other health-related professions. SNPhA’s goal is to plan and implement programs geared toward improving the community’s health, educational and social environments.
Categories Alumni news, Faculty news, Student news