SOP alumnus Michael Elliott tapped to speak for graduation
Michael Elliott, senior vice president and chief operating officer for Centra Health in Lynchburg, has been selected as guest speaker for VCU School of Pharmacy’s 2016 Hooding and Diploma Ceremony.
Elliott is a double VCU alumnus: He earned his Pharm.D. degree in 2002, then a master of science in health administration in 2007. He is a member of the Virginia Board of Pharmacy, serves on the board of directors for the Historic Virginia Chapter of the Red Cross, and is chairman of the Board for Human Kind. In March, he took part in a School of Pharmacy and Student National Pharmaceutical Association-hosted panel discussion. “Voices” featured six African-American pharmacists reflecting on their experiences in the field and in relation to diversity issues.
Presiding over the Hooding and Diploma Ceremony will be Dean Joseph DiPiro. Tom Reinders, associate dean for admissions and student services, will announce the graduates.
The graduating Pharm.D. class annually chooses marshals for the school’s Hooding and Diploma Ceremony. Selected by the class of 2016 were faculty members Emily Peron and Benjamin Van Tassell, both with the Department of Pharmacotherapy and Outcomes Science, who will lead the opening processional and assist students with their hoods.
Graduation-related events for the class of 2016 are as follows:
May 12: Senior Awards Banquet for Pharm.D. graduates, 6-6:45 p.m. reception with cash bar and 7-9:30 p.m., dinner and awards presentation, Hilton Richmond Hotel & Spa at Short Pump, 12042 W. Broad St.
May 13: Hooding and Diploma Ceremony for all School of Pharmacy graduates, 2 p.m., St. Paul’s Baptist Church, 4247 Creighton Road (students arrive by 1 p.m., faculty no later than 1:30 p.m.). Guest speaker: Michael Elliott.
May 14: VCU Commencement for all university graduates, 10 a.m., Richmond Coliseum, 601 E. Leigh St. (students and faculty arrive by 9 a.m.). At noon, graduates may pick up their diplomas at the Smith Building.
May 26: Graduate Awards Banquet for M.S., Ph.D. and combined degree graduates, 11:30 a.m., Omni Richmond Hotel, 100 S. 12th St. Guest speaker: Eric Edwards, chief medical officer and vice president of research and development for the Richmond-based pharmaceutical company kaléo. A triple VCU graduate, he earned a bachelor of science in biology from the College of Humanities and Sciences in 2002, a Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences from the School of Pharmacy in 2011 and an M.D. from the School of Medicine in 2013. He is 2015-16 chairman of the School of Pharmacy’s Graduate Advisory Board.
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