Manchester University Pharmacy Program receives full accreditation

FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Manchester University President Dave McFadden announced this afternoon that the Pharmacy Program is now fully accredited by the Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education.

“Our first students, and our faculty and staff for that matter, made a leap of faith when they signed up for our fledgling program,” he said. “Full accreditation is a huge milestone for the University and reward for those who took a chance with us because they shared our vision.”

A pharmacy program can be fully accredited by the ACPE only after it graduates its first class, part of a process that takes years. The first class in the MU four-year doctoral program graduated in May.

Recent graduate Brianna Hawks of Denver, Colo., was one of more than 270 students who came to Fort Wayne from all over the nation to take part in the program, even though it had not yet been fully accredited. “The school’s vision and how to approach a new pharmacy program seemed more cutting edge than other schools, and I wanted to help pioneer the school’s mission,” she said.

McFadden thanked Raylene Rospond, MU vice president and dean of the program, and Tommy Smith, assistant dean for assessment and accreditation, who led the ACPE self-study process, and everyone who helped get to this point.

“Our exceptional team of faculty and staff worked in collaboration with dozens of preceptors and experiential sites to provide our students with a rich and rigorous program,” Rospond said. “We take seriously our mission to educate future pharmacists who provide patient-centered care guided by respect for the infinite worth of individuals.

“All of that hard work paid off, and we are looking forward to an even brighter future,” she said.

On Dec. 3, 2010, then-President Jo Young Switzer received a call from Lilly Endowment Inc. informing her that the Endowment was awarding Manchester $35 million to launch the pharmacy program in Fort Wayne. The gift led to MU’s Fort Wayne campus at Dupont and Diebold roads and remains the largest in the University’s 127-year history.

Before becoming fully accredited, the Pharmacy Program functioned under “candidate” status, denoting a developmental program with a defined time period in which to meet requirements for full accreditation.

The Fort Wayne campus is also home to the nation’s only dedicated master’s degree program in pharmacogenomics.

July 11, 2016