Ogbonna tapped as SOP associate dean for admissions, student services
Kelechi C. “K.C.” Ogbonna has been named associate dean for admissions and student services by Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy, effective Nov. 15.
“We are very fortunate to have Dr. Ogbonna as our new associate dean,” said School of Pharmacy Dean Joseph T. DiPiro. “He brings a wealth of talent, energy and ideas to the position. He has been an exceptional faculty member and emerging leader. This position is a great match for his talents, and we will all benefit from his appointment.”
Ogbonna joined the School of Pharmacy in 2012 as an assistant professor in the Department of Pharmacotherapy and Outcomes Science. Since last year, he also has served as director of the school’s newly established PGY2 Geriatric Residency Program, one of fewer than 20 such residencies available nationwide. Prior to his arrival at VCU, he served as an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Connecticut School of Pharmacy and as an inpatient staff pharmacist at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System.
“Situated within an academic medical center, I believe we are uniquely positioned to leverage our nearly 120-year tradition of graduating change agents that are tasked with leading the pharmacy profession,” Ogbonna said. “I look forward to working with students, faculty, staff and alumni to share our story, build upon our foundation and recruit the pharmacists of tomorrow.”
His work as a co-investigator and core faculty member with the interprofessional Richmond Health & Wellness Program is part of the school’s national award-winning Pharmacist Collaborative Care and Outreach in the Community program. RHWP’s most recent grant, $1.5 million from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, allowed the program to replicate its original practice model, an on-site wellness clinic for low-income elders residing at Dominion Place in Richmond.
The endeavor now has expanded to include five locations. As a faculty preceptor, Ogbonna has worked with more than 100 Pharm.D. students who have participated in RHWP since its 2012 inception.
After studying chemistry in the pre-pharmacy program at Fairleigh Dickinson University, he earned his Pharm.D. degree at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences. He completed a PGY1 residency in pharmacy practice and a PGY2 residency in geriatrics through the VA Connecticut Healthcare System. In May, Ogbonna will receive a master of science degree in health administration from the VCU School of Allied Health Professions.
He is chairman-elect of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy’s Geriatric Special Interest Group and immediate past chairman of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists’ Educational Advisory Committee.
The school’s former associate dean for admissions and student services, Thomas P. Reinders, retired in August. His assistant director, Ron Ballentine, has served as interim associate dean.
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