Four student-faculty teams were named 2018 Walmart Scholars by the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. This is the most winners the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy has had in the award’s 14-year history.
This year’s recipients of the award are:
- Sarah M. Anderson, Pharm.D., and her faculty mentor, Denise Rhoney, Pharm.D.,the Ron and Nancy McFarlane Distinguished Professor at the School.
- Scott A. Brewster, Pharm.D., and his faculty mentor, Macary Marciniak, Pharm.D, a clinical associate professor.
- Kelsea Gallegos and her faculty mentor, Gretchen Ray, Pharm.D., a clinician educator associate professor at the University of New Mexico.
- Shannon Palmer and her faculty mentor, David Steeb, Pharm.D., M.P.H., a clinical assistant professor.
At least two UNC student-faculty pairings have been named AACP Walmart Scholars every year since 2007, a 12-year streak. Students and faculty from the School have now won the award 33 times.
This year marks the first time four groups from the School have received the award. Before 2018, the School had three recipient pairings in six of seven years. No other school won more than three awards this year.
Anderson is the 2017–2019 fellow in curricular innovation. She serves as course administrator for the Integrative Pharmacotherapy Stream courses.
Brewster completed his PGY1 community-based pharmacy residency at Moose Pharmacy in Mount Pleasant, North Carolina. He is a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Practice and Clinical Education.
Gallegos finished her PGY1 community-based pharmacy residency working with Walgreens in Asheville. She is an adjunct instructor in the Department of Practice Advancement and Clinical Education.
Palmer has finished her third year in the School’s Pharm.D. program, where she served as president of Rho Chi and career development vice president. In her fourth year, she will be on rotation at UNC Hospitals.
The goal of the AACP Walmart Scholars program is to strengthen the recipients’ skills and commitment to a career in academic pharmacy. The 85 students are provided $1,000 travel scholarships to attend the AACP Annual Meeting and the AACP Teachers Seminar in Boston in July with their faculty mentors.
With the announcement of this year’s results, Steeb now holds the distinction of being a AACP Walmart Scholar both as a student in 2014 and as a faculty mentor in 2018.