Pritchard Named UH Pharmacy Dean

Dr. F. Lamar Pritchard has been named dean for the College of Pharmacy at the University of Houston, concluding a national search. Pritchard, who begins his new duties Aug. 1, succeeds Mustafa F. Lokhandwala, who has served as interim dean since September 2008.

As both dean of the college of Health Sciences (July 2004 to July 2005) and dean of the College of Pharmacy (August 2005 to present) at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Pritchard has led and managed eight separate health science programs, 193 faculty and staff and 4,400 students. Development giving to the ULM College of Pharmacy increased six-fold under Pritchard's leadership.

He is a fourth-generation pharmacist with broad experience in retail, clinical and hospital pharmacy; the pharmaceutical industry; and as a faculty member at the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy. His Phar-Ser-Qual pharmacy services quality assessment instrument has been used in six countries.

Before becoming dean at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Pritchard was the medical science manager at Bristol-Myers Squibb. There, he was responsible for the development and implementation of trials and pre-launch activities for several new drugs, and made medical presentations in the areas of cardiology, neurology and endocrinology to audiences of professionals in internal medicine and family practice.

He provided medical science and research support, as well as targeted research initiatives, for major medical academic/research centers in the District of Columbia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina regions.

Pritchard's appointment resulted from a national search chaired by Earl Smith, dean of the College of Optometry. Pritchard was one of four finalists who participated in two-day campus visits and open forums during April.

"During my interview visits, I was impressed with the College of Pharmacy - particularly the faculty, staff, students, alumni and laudable heritage," Pritchard said. "I was also highly impressed with the leadership at the top.

"President (Renu) Khator and Provost (John) Antel are extremely talented and have very high expectations for the university. I have been afforded a wonderful opportunity to work with leaders of their caliber. I am also excited about the vast collaborative opportunities that exist on the UH campus and at the Texas Medical Center."

Pritchard said he will initially work to achieve four priorities:

  • Increase funding for the college. "Ultimately, I would like to see us triple our annual budget," he said. "This would allow us to compete nationally with other Tier One programs across the country such as the University of California at San Francisco, the University of Maryland and the University of Florida."
  • Build a new state-of-the-art Pharmacy facility that will provide all of the resources that will be necessary to meet the extensive goals of a Tier One research institution
  • Recruit additional talented and productive faculty who have the key skills in the areas of teaching, scholarship and service that will be necessary for the program to excel
  • Develop the University of Houston Center for Drug Discovery that will provide a foundation that will bring together the strengths of many research disciplines across the UH campus and beyond. Such a center has the potential to foster a very productive "bench-to-bedside" research effort, Pritchard said.

Antel said Pritchard is a proven leader.

"Lamar Pritchard has a track record of success in leading organizational teams in both the academic and industry sectors," he said. "I'm confident he is the right person to sharpen our focus on the health sciences and health care delivery, and he will help us strengthen our partnerships with the Texas Medical Center. Our students will benefit greatly from having him as their dean, and I thank the search committee for its exemplary work."

At UH, Pritchard will lead a college that has more than 50 years of experience in preparing its graduates to become leaders in the ever-changing health-care field. With its pioneering curriculum, outstanding faculty and research opportunities, and location in a city with a rich mosaic of culture, the UH College of Pharmacy is an international leader in educating and preparing pharmacists for tomorrow's world of pharmacy.

Pritchard earned his Ph. D. in pharmacy at the University of Georgia and his B.Sc. in pharmacy from the University of Georgia School of Pharmacy in Athens, Ga.

He and his wife, Judy, have two children, Matt, 20, and Rebecca, 18.


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