Rodney Carter, PH’76, dean of the School of Pharmacy and professor of pharmacy practice at Regis University in Denver, Colorado, was selected to receive the 2016 Lawrence C. and Delores M. Weaver Medal of Honor, the highest honor given by Drake University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. As part of this honor, he will deliver the 2016 Weaver Medal of Honor Lecture on Wednesday, April 27 at 2 p.m. in Sheslow Auditorium, 2507 University Ave. The lecture is free and open to the public.
The Weaver Medal of Honor is made possible through the generous gifts of the Weaver family. Lawrence Weaver, PH’49, was dean emeritus of the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy and a vice president of professional relations with the Pharmaceutical Manufactures Association.
Carter met Weaver at the University of Minnesota while pursuing his doctor of pharmacy degree, which he received in 1978. After returning to the University of Minnesota in 2001 as a professor of pharmacy practice and associate dean for professional and external relations, Carter and Weaver reconnected as colleagues.
The Weaver Medal of Honor recognizes an individual’s dedication to making a substantial impact on the profession of pharmacy and the advancement of human health. It is presented annually to a recipient who has fulfilled one of the following criteria: the individual’s efforts have advanced the education, research, or outreach mission of the college for the benefit of human health; the individual has made a substantial impact on the profession of pharmacy; or the individual has provided to the college significant financial support that has funded strategic change and progress. The award is made possible by the generous gift of Lawrence Weaver, PH’49, and his wife, Delores. Learn more here.
“Larry Weaver was a mentor of mine and set an example in leadership that I’ve tried to follow,” said Carter. “I’m very pleased to be able to say that we are both Drake University alumni, and that our paths crossed as colleagues at the University of Minnesota. I am honored that I will be receiving the award bearing his name. He had a vision that he wasn’t afraid to follow, and he was able to see further into the future than most of us as it comes to pharmacy practice and education.”
After completing his PharmD, Carter served as a faculty member at Purdue University where he also Coordinator of Purdue’s Nontraditional PharmD program between 1992-1996.
In 1996, Carter became the inaugural chair of the Department of Clinical Pharmacy and professor at the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy at Shenandoah University. Under his guidance, the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy became the first pharmacy school in the country to incorporate laptop computer technology into the classroom.
During his tenure as associate dean at the University of Minnesota, Carter led the College of Pharmacy’s expansion to the University of Minnesota-Duluth campus while fostering strong relationships with alumni and the pharmacy community. He also oversaw the selection and presentation of Minnesota’s Weaver Medal each year.
Since becoming dean at Regis University in 2012, Carter has been responsible for providing leadership and vision to keep the School of Pharmacy at the forefront of pharmacy education and practice. He has also overseen the operations of the school, including promoting fiscal stewardship, faculty scholarship, and supporting the school’s innovative integrated team-based learning model of teaching.
Carter said his Weaver Medal of Honor Lecture will focus on the theme of opportunity. Both Carter and Weaver served as president of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, and Carter loves to cite a quote that Weaver used during his AACP Presidential Inauguration: “Too much blue sky? Perhaps! But shouldn’t we try.”
“That’s really where I’m going to start from with my lecture—I continue to think about that quote and our various opportunities,” said Carter. “We are at a time in the profession when there are lots of changes in the air, and we need to seize the opportunities that are presented to us.”