Award will help pharmacy prof lead, advocate for change

By Lori Maricle, College of Pharmacy

SPOKANE, Wash. – Jennifer Robinson, pharmacy clinical associate professor, is one of 30 educators nationwide selected for the 2016-17 Academic Leadership Fellows Program (ALFP) of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.

She intends to use the fellowship to become a more effective leader, “so I can better support those around me – my staff and students – and inspire them to be better leaders.”

Fellows expand relationships with peers and colleagues in their colleges, universities and other institutions. They are matched with “leadership facilitators” – professionals who mentor them as they learn about administration, leadership development, team building and legislative and public policy issues critical to pharmaceutical and higher education.

The Washington State University College of Pharmacy has a strong reputation for developing pharmacists who become leaders in their health care communities, said Robinson, whose research interests include leadership, innovative teaching methods and clinical community practice.

“I’ve appreciated our college’s focus on leadership development,” she said. “We have a faculty mentor program for new faculty and a teaching development program so we can become better educators.

“Every part of our academic community can grow and get better,” she said. “That’s what this place does. I expect that I will not be the last AACP leadership fellow from WSU.”

Over the last five years, the College of Pharmacy has implemented innovations to the doctor of pharmacy program to offer a better, learner-focused education and in turn develop the health care leaders of the future.

“The focus of this fellowship is really so we can have more advocates for change, whether small changes within our own programs or larger ones across pharmacy academics or practice,” said Robinson. “This is a connection to my peers across academic pharmacy, which gives me a vast group of allies for support in the changes we are all advocating for.”

Robinson is also assistant dean for recruitment and student success in the college. She graduated with a doctor of pharmacy degree from WSU in 2005 and managed Jones Pharmacy in Spokane until 2008 when she joined the WSU faculty.