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College of Pharmacy

Students, Alumni and Staff Draw High Honors at TSHP Annual Seminar

Leadership, Research and Service Recognized at Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists Event

April 10, 2025 —
Tran, Glass, Johnson, Ma and Jones
The UHCOP teams of Gia Tran and Alyssa Glass and Chad Johnson, Cynthia Ma and Braxton Jones placed third and first, respectively, in the TSHP Student Pharmacist Leadership Challenge Competition. Not pictured are fellow third- and first-place team members Sydney Mohr and Jasmine Malhotra, respectively.

University of Houston College of Pharmacy students, alumni and a staff member received Texas-size honors at the Texas Society of Health-System Pharmacists (TSHP) 2025 Annual Seminar April 3-5 in Irving.

Leadership Challenge

For a fourth consecutive year, a UHCOP team has won the case-based Student Pharmacist Leadership Challenge Competition. In the two-phase competition, teams of two to four students submit a 5- to 10-page written response plan to a given "challenge" facing a health system's operations. The top three finalist teams then present their response live before a panel of judges at the seminar.

This year's winning team comprised Chad Johnson, Braxton Jones and Cynthia Ma captured first place, with the team of Alyssa Glass and Gia Tran finishing in third place.

Alumni and Staff Accolades

Several alumni and a staff member were among the top individual award recipients:

  • TSHP Fellow: Joshua Blackwell, Pharm.D., M.S. ('17), MBA, BCSCP, UT Southwestern Medical Center clinical pharmacy manager, ambulatory services
  • Larry C. Nesmith Pharmacist Recognition Award: Stephanie Crowley, Pharm.D. ('19), M.S. ('21), HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood pharmacy operations manager
  • Mike Knapp Pharmacy Technician Award: Leslie Joseph, B.S., RPhT, UHCOP instructional lab manager
  • Pharmacy Mentor Award: Claire Latiolais, Pharm.D., M.S. ('17), The University of Texas-MD Anderson Cancer Center clinical pharmacy specialist
  • Adela Schneider Pharmacy Leadership Award: Phuoc Anne Nguyen, Pharm.D., M.S. ('15), BCPS, FTSHP, Harris Health System transitions and post-acute care services pharmacy manager
  • Leo F. & Ann Godley Residency Fellowship Award: Michael Toraño, Pharm.D. ('23), BCPS, CPHQ, UHCOP M.S. candidate and Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy Administration and Leadership resident (THP)
Hyman holding certificate with Dugie and Xu
Students Jeremy Ninan, Julianne Yanga, Dacia Esquell and Melanie Garcia were recognized with an Honorable Mention in the Research Poster Competition – Student Category.
Hyman holding certificate with Dugie and Xu
The Houston Program's Alexis Hyman, Pharm.D., MBA, is congratulated by TSHP Research & Education Foundation President Bonnie Dugie, Pharm.D., MBA, CSP, FTSHP, and Poster Competition Coordinator Ran Xu, Ph.D., Pharm.D. ('09), BCPS, BCCCP, BCIDP, BCSCP, FTSHP, for earning an Honorable Mention in the Resident/Fellow/Post-Graduate PGY2 Category.
Joseph receives award from Wagner
Leslie M. Joseph, B.S., RPhT, instructional lab manager, receives the Mike Knapp Pharmacy Technician Award from TSHP President Jeff Wagner, Pharm.D., MPH, BCPS.

Scholarships

Multiple Pharm.D. and THP students and candidates were awarded scholarships from the TSHP Research & Education Foundation:

  • Richard Cadle Mentoring Scholarship for Pharmacy Leadership: THP's Tyler England, Pharm.D., UHCOP M.S. candidate and The University of Texas – MD Anderson Cancer Center PGY2 resident
  • Gulf Coast Society of Health-System Pharmacists Leadership Scholarship: Megan Huang Frazier, Pharm.D. student
  • Phyllis B. Ginsburg Memorial Scholarship: Glory Anne Garcia, Pharm.D. student
  • Sidney Phillips Memorial Scholarship: Kevin Huynh, Pharm.D. candidate
  • Frederick W. Mullin Endowed Pharmacy Scholarship: THP's Michael Toraño, Pharm.D. ('23), MBA, BCPS, CPHQ, UHCOP M.S. candidate and Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center PGY2 residen

Poster Competition

UHCOP students also were recognized with honorable mentions in the foundation's Research Poster Competition:

The poster, "Evaluating Waste Validation with the Expansion of Raman Spectroscopy," by Pharm.D. students Dacia Esquell, Melanie Garcia, Jeremy Ninan and Julianne Yanga was recognized in the Student Category. Coauthors on the project were THP alumni Amanda Beck, Pharm.D., M.S. ('17), Houston Methodist Cypress Hospital director of pharmacy; Linda Haines, Pharm.D., M.S. ('11), BCPS, FTSHP, Houston Methodist Hospital (HMH)-TMC; and Atra Mouser, Pharm.D. ('22), M.S. ('24), HMH-TMC pharmacy manager.

The poster, "Developing a Pharmacist Productivity Dashboard in a Health-System," by THP's Alexis Hyman, Pharm.D., MBA, UHCOP M.S. candidate and HMH PGY2 Health-System Pharmacy Administration and Leadership resident, drew recognition in the Resident/Fellow/Post-Graduate: PGY2 category. Hyman's coauthors were David Putney, Pharm.D. ('00), MPH, and Engie Attia, Pharm.D., BCPS, HMH clinical pharmacy managers; and Michael Liebl, Pharm.D., BCPS, Houston Methodist System director of system clinical pharmacy services.

Blackwell and other TSHP Fellows hold plaques on stage
Joshua Blackwell, Pharm.D., M.S. (’17), MBA, BCSCP, third from left, is inducted into the TSHP Pharmacist Practitioner Recognition Fellows Program (FTSHP).
Frost speaking at podium
Craig P. Frost, R.Ph. (B.S. '91), MBA, FACHE, former president and COO of Sectyr, LLC, delivers the Joyce A. Tipton Leadership Lecture.
Cox holds plaque on stage
The Houston Program alumnus Rodney Cox, B.S. Pharm., R.Ph., M.S. ('11), is recognized for his service to TSHP as he completes his term as immediate past president.

Signature Speeches

Two distinguished alumni of the college also were among the highlighted presenters at the meeting. Fresh from his transition as President to Immediate Past President of the American Pharmacists Assocation, Alex C. Varkey, Pharm.D. ('05), M.S., FAPhA, director of pharmacy at Houston Methodist Hospital, presented the seminar's keynote address, "Many Paths, One Profession."

In addition, Craig P. Frost, R.Ph. (B.S. '91), MBA, FACHE, former president and COO of Sectyr LLC, delivered the Joyce A. Tipton Leadership Lecture, "A Journey towards Purpose and Authenticity: An Entrepreneurial Perspective."

Group photo of The Houston Program alumni, mentors and supporters
Award recipients and honorees from The Houston Program (THP) display their recognition plaques alongside fellow THP alumni, mentors and supporters.

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