Editor’s note: Look to Leadership is a new column that provides a platform for university leaders to educate the campus community on the direction and developments of their college, school or unit. These messages will connect to the Look to Michigan vision, and provide a big-picture example of what everyday excellence looks like at U-M.
Pharmacy education at the University of Michigan began long before we were a standalone college. In fact, our roots trace back to 1839, when the regents expressed interest in teaching the subject of chemistry and pharmacy in the Department of Literature, Science and the Arts. The first pharmacy class was taught by Professor Alfred DuBous in 1855, several decades before the Board of Regents established the School of Pharmacy — marking the official beginning of what would become 150 years of groundbreaking impact.
From the very beginning, U-M was intent on developing a life-changing education, setting the pace for what pharmacy education, patient care and scientific discovery could be because every human deserves to be healthy and thriving. At the time, only nine pharmacy schools existed in the United States, three of which have since closed. Yet U-M leaned into the challenge. We were early believers that pharmacy mattered, not just as an academic discipline, but as a force for improving human health and patient care.
Our first dean, Albert Prescott, argued, radical for his time, that pharmacy education must be grounded in basic science and objective evidence rather than apprenticeship alone. His stance was considered heretical, and he was initially ostracized by educational and professional establishments. But Prescott stood firm, and within three decades, nearly every pharmacy school in the nation had adopted the scientific model he championed. We didn’t stop there.
Harvey A.K. Whitney received his Ph.C. degree from U-M in 1923 and became the chief pharmacist at University Hospital. He is credited with establishing the first residency program in the country.
Later in 1980, Dean Ara Paul shifted the terminal degree from the BS Pharm to the PharmD two decades before our accrediting body made the change. In 1984, we graduated our first PharmD class.
We didn’t just establish a pharmacy school; we established the blueprint for modern pharmacy education that many of our peer schools have worked to adopt. 150 years later, that spirit of forward-thinking leadership continues to define who we are and allows us to lead at pharmacy’s edge.
Celebrating 150 years of leading at pharmacy’s edge
As we celebrate our 150th anniversary, the college stands as a living testament to what happens when a community refuses to accept the status quo. Today’s pharmacists are essential healthcare providers — experts in increasingly targeted, complex and lifesaving therapies. They are a patient’s most accessible clinician, serving as educators, advocates and problem-solvers who ensure care is safe, coordinated and grounded in evidence.
For a century and a half, our faculty and alumni have fueled that evolution and innovation. Their contributions touch nearly every corner of healthcare, from medication discovery, drug delivery, outcomes research, health policy and community care models that have made and continue to improve our health.
Our alumni include trailblazers such as Rosemary Berardi, our first female clinical pharmacist and first PharmD faculty member; Hans Vahlteich, whose chemical process transformed the food industry; Joseph Burckhalter, a National Inventors Hall of Fame inductee; Gordon Amidon, whose Biopharmaceutics Classification System still guides FDA drug approvals; and Hae Mi Choe, whose pharmacist-led hypertension program is now the CDC’s national model for blood pressure control.
Not to mention, our faculty continue to push boundaries. In 2025 alone, 29 of our faculty members were named among the world’s Top 2% of Scientists in a list published by Stanford University in partnership with Elsevier— an extraordinary acknowledgment of the strength, depth and global influence of our research community.
Attributing to our spirit of innovation, in 2024, the College of Pharmacy had the third-highest number of invention disclosures on campus, after the College of Engineering and the Medical School, not bad for one of the smaller units on campus. Since tracking began in 1985, the college has also been issued 644 patents, underscoring our commitment to discovery and impact.
What’s to come: the next 150 years
As we honor this legacy of developing a life-changing education in pharmacy and delivering world-class healthcare to our communities, we are also building our next era of impact. In 2026, we will move into a new 142,000-square-foot academic home — the first mass-timber building on campus. Positioned between the central and medical campus, it will offer new laboratories, collaboration spaces and technology-rich environments.
But a building alone does not define a future. Our students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors and our commitments do.
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My vision for the next 150 years is bold because our students, faculty, staff, patients and communities deserve nothing less.
First, we aim to provide tuition support for every student across every program. Future leaders should not be limited by financial barriers.
Second, we seek to dramatically increase research funding and named professorships, empowering faculty and Ph.D. students to take risks — risks that lead to FDA labeling changes, groundbreaking therapy discoveries, and transformative models of care.
And third, we will continue preparing our students to be changemakers. I want the College of Pharmacy to discover the next blockbuster drug, influence and change healthcare policy to make care more affordable and pioneer the next care model that becomes the national standard.
The world needs pharmacists now more than ever. Medications are becoming more sophisticated. Chronic conditions more common. Health inequities more urgent. Patients need a knowledgeable, accessible professional.
For 150 years, U-M Pharmacy has answered that call. With the talent, momentum and passion of our communities, I have no doubt that over the next 150 years we will play a role in reshaping healthcare in ways we can hardly imagine today.
