In the following Q&A, Harris Pastides, vice president for research and health sciences, addresses issues pertaining to the union of the two colleges.

Can we expect that pharmacy education will remain available to future generations of students who wish to pursue graduate studies on the USC campus?
Pastides: Absolutely.Pharmacy education, including the full range of pre-pharmacy and PharmD training, will continue to be offered at USC. It is my firm hope that curricular changes will serve to strengthen the overall quality of our offerings, and lead to increased national recognition for the rigor and creativity of the PharmD program.

Will students interested in receiving a PharmD in Columbia be directed to study in Charleston?
Pastides: No. There will be a common PharmD application and a single admissions committee for the Columbia and Charleston programs, but students will be able to apply to the program of their choice and, if accepted, be invited to matriculate and graduate from their preferred site.

Will there be a dean, on site at USC, responsible for day to day operations of the program?
Pastides: Yes. The Columbia campus dean will be resident and will report to an executive dean who will reside in Charleston, but have offices on both campuses. The pharmacy dean will remain a part of the USC Council of Deans and the Health Sciences Administrative Council.

When will the South Carolina College of Pharmacy become operational?
Pastides: As everyone knows, we are in the process of recruiting an executive dean at the present time. This individual will jointly report to the boards of both MUSC and USC through appropriate administrative channels. The executive dean will work closely with the administrators, faculty, students and staff of each program to integrate the curriculum, address accreditation issues, increase collaborative research, and integrate administrative functions. Obviously, there is much important work to be done. It is vital that we move ahead energetically, but that we take the appropriate time to make informed decisions and to communicate them effectively.

The work required to integrate the current colleges of pharmacy has already begun, and will be accelerated by hiring the executive dean. Nevertheless, the South Carolina College of Pharmacy will not become the institution recognized as offering the accredited PharmD degree until the final class of students admitted under the individual USC and MUSC programs have graduated. Until then, the USC College of Pharmacy will remain independently accredited by the ACPE (Accrediting Council for Pharmacy Education).

Problems are bound to arise and resolving them could be difficult given the dual reporting requirements for the executive dean. How will conflicts be handled?
Pastides: We plan to appoint an advisory board that will serve as a resource to assist in resolving conflicts. It will include the president of the SC Pharmacy Association, the president of the SC Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists, the chairman of the SC Board of Pharmacists, and representatives of both colleges and the greater universities.

10/04