The University of Houston College of Pharmacy (UHCOP) chapter of the American Pharmacists Association Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP) has received the National Outstanding International Pharmaceutical Students’ Federation (IPSF) Activity Award for 2024-25, a distinction presented at the APhA Annual Meeting & Exposition, March 27-30 in Los Angeles.
The honor comes from IPSF, an international advocacy organization for student pharmacists of which APhA-ASP is a member.
The award recognizes chapters that most effectively embody the IPSF mission of advancing public health awareness and pharmacy’s role in it, both locally and globally. For the UHCOP chapter, that objective became the foundation for everything it pursued throughout the year.
“When we planned our events, we did not have the intention of winning any accolades or recognition; we simply wanted to make an impact on our community and beyond,” Kathryn Preston, M.S., Pharm.D. candidate, said. “What makes our chapter stand out is our passion for curating events that highlighted our own unique interests as future pharmacists while also aligning with the IPSF mission of promoting the importance of public health locally and globally in easily understandable and applicable ways.”
Leading the chapter’s 2024-25 efforts was a team of five Pharm.D. students: International Vice President Kathryn Preston, Senior Chair Meheret (Mercy) Tadesse, and Junior Chairs Qamar Dhafer, Aya Al Obaidi and Atefeh Ghane Ezabadi. Together, they organized 13 IPSF-aligned events across the academic year.
Blueprint for Global Impact
Several of the chapter’s most celebrated events this year centered on expanding how student pharmacists think about the profession’s global reach and evolving responsibilities.
The U.K. vs. U.S. Guest Speaker Event brought an international pharmacist to campus for a candid discussion comparing the two countries’ approaches to pharmacy education, licensing and patient care. Rather than a traditional lecture, the session was designed to broaden students’ perspectives on pharmacy practice worldwide.
“With the U.S. vs. U.K. Pharmacies event, our goal was to introduce a global perspective, encouraging students to think beyond traditional U.S.-based practice and explore how pharmacy roles differ internationally,” Tadesse, Pharm.D. candidate, said.
The chapter also organized an HIV/AIDS awareness event for National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, focusing on health disparities and stigma reduction in underserved communities.
Additionally, the Empowering Youth Against Nicotine and CBD Use event was designed to reach younger audiences navigating an increasingly complex landscape of substance misinformation. These events allowed participants to ask questions openly and challenge misconceptions.
Saving Lives
If some events were designed to shift perspectives, others were built to directly save lives.
The chapter’s Blood & Organ Donation Campaign, dubbed the Vampire Cup, was one of the year’s clearest demonstrations of community impact. Partnering with the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, the team recruited more than 20 donors and collected 30 units of blood — enough to save approximately 90 lives.
“Our team was able to make a tangible impact on our local community that has a ripple effect globally,” Preston said. “For our blood drive initiative, we were able to recruit over 20 donors who provided enough blood to save 90 lives while also educating donors on the importance of this life-saving gift.”
That same hands-on approach extended to the chapter’s breast cancer awareness initiative, which provided vital information on cancer prevention alongside referrals for discounted mammogram services.
At the annual City of Houston Mayor’s Back 2 School Fest, chapter members also engaged with more than 160 families about vaccine safety, answered questions about immunization and connected attendees to low-cost vaccine services.
Local Roots, Global Reach
Across 13 events, five student leaders and a year of deliberate, community-first planning, the chapter demonstrated what the award itself represents: pharmacy students can connect local action to global impact.
“As a team, we intentionally focused on creating interactive, discussion-driven experiences that increased awareness, encouraged critical thinking, and highlighted the evolving role of pharmacists in both local and global health,” Tadesse said.