College celebrates standout alumni at 2024 Alumni Awards Ceremony
The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy hosted its annual Alumni Awards Ceremony on Oct. 4 to celebrate eight outstanding Pharmacy Buckeyes.
2024 Alumni Recipients
The Lifetime Achievement Award
This award was established for outstanding lifelong accomplishments in pharmacy, pharmaceutical sciences or public service. The impact of the candidate’s stellar contributions to the professional, scientific and/or educational communities is judged by biographical data, including published work and previous honors.
Recipients must have completed a degree or post-graduate training at the College of Pharmacy. This award is not given in any regular, repeating time period, but only when truly outstanding candidates are identified.
William A. Miller, PharmD, MS ’69, BS ’65, MSc, FASHP, FCCP
Dr. William (Bill) Miller is a professor emeritus of clinical and administrative pharmacy at the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy. He has held various positions in pharmacy and higher education, including director of pharmacy, chairman, teacher and student and resident preceptor. He is the author of over 100 publications. Dr. Miller’s research interests include evaluative and outcome studies dealing with pharmaceutical education and pharmacy practice.
He is a past president of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy and the American College of Clinical Pharmacy. He served on the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Commission on Credentialing, the accrediting body for pharmacy residency programs in the United States, for six years and was its chair for two years.
He is a recipient of the Parker Medal from the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and the Harvey A.K. Whitney Award Lecture from ASHP.
He currently serves as a contract lead surveyor for the accreditation of residency programs by ASHP, a consultant to the American Pharmacists Association, and as a member of the Board of Directors for the journal, Pharmacotherapy.
Leaders need to know their strengths and surround themselves with people who have strengths that complement you. It’s a real honor for me to come back to my alma mater to accept this award.
The Josephine Sitterle Failer Alumni Award
Named in honor of Josephine Sitterle Failer, BS ’39, a longtime benefactor who contributed service to the college for nearly five decades.
The award recognizes an alumnus who has received a professional degree or completed post-graduate training from the College of Pharmacy within the past 10 years and has made an outstanding contribution to community or professional service.
Steven M. Loborec, PharmD, MS ’15, MPH, BCPS
Dr. Steven Loborec is an associate director at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center Department of Pharmacy (OSUWMC). In his role, Dr. Loborec oversees the department’s finances, supply chain and 340B. He also leads the pharmacy aggregation group, TS3 (The Strategic Sourcing Solution), to leverage committed volume, formulary management, and professional collaboration to optimize cost savings and revenue enhancement. These initiatives have yielded more than $500M in savings over the past eight years. Dr. Loborec’s professional accomplishments include preparing the first COVID-19 vaccine in the State of Ohio while serving as the primary vaccine coordinator between the Centers for Disease Control, Ohio Department of Health, and OSUWMC during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was elected to advocate on behalf of all staff and serve as an advisor to the president of The Ohio State University as chair of the University Staff Advisory Committee. Dr. Loborec received his PharmD from Purdue University and completed the two-year Health-System Pharmacy Administration Residency at OSUWMC. After residency, Steven completed an additional year of fellowship training focusing on pharmacy finance while completing his Master of Public Health and serving as a student trustee on The Ohio State University Board of Trustees.
I am deeply grateful and humbled to accept this recognition…I want to challenge everyone here to make sure we are telling our whole stories, not just the ‘highlight reel’ of our lives. Remember the road to success is often paved with obstacles, but it’s how we navigate them that defines us. Embrace them, learn from them and don’t forget to laugh along the way.
The Jack L. Beal Post-Baccalaureate Award
Named in honor of Jack L. Beal, PhD ’52, professor emeritus of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy at The Ohio State University.
The recipient of the Beal Award must have a post-baccalaureate degree from the College of Pharmacy and have contributed significantly to research and scholarship in the pharmaceutical sciences and/or contributed outstanding service to the professional practice of pharmacy.
Shamina Ranwala, PhD ’97
Dr. Shamina Rangwala is a vice president of project leadership at Pioneering Medicines, a Flagship Pioneering company, where she leads programs aimed at developing novel therapies for obesity and cardiometabolic disease. Dr. Rangwala started her industry career at NIBR (Novartis) in Cambridge, MA, investigating novel mechanisms regulating skeletal muscle mitochondrial function and its impact on energy balance and metabolic health. Her interest in body weight regulation and glycemic control led to a position at Novo Nordisk in Copenhagen, Denmark, focused on the discovery of peptide and protein therapeutics for obesity and type 2 diabetes. A subsequent position in the CVM therapeutic area discovery group at Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) focused on obesity led her to an External Innovation role at the JNJ Innovation Center in London, where she led efforts to identify opportunities in cardiometabolic therapies across Europe. Dr. Rangwala was then the search and evaluation lead for Internal Medicine in the Worldwide Business Development group at Pfizer. She received her PhD in Pharmacology at The Ohio State University and completed her post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research interests focused on PPARs and adipokines on body weight regulation and insulin resistance.
Reflecting on my PhD years, I am truly filled with gratitude. This college provided me with an exceptional education and a supportive community that encouraged me to push my boundaries and explore new possibilities.
Ray Michael Snider, PhD ’82
Dr. Mike Snider is retired from a 25+ year career in the pharmaceutical industry, where he worked to advance medical treatments and the human condition. Dr. Snider’s career focused on early drug discovery research. High-Throughput Screening (HTS) was newly implemented at Pfizer and used extensively as the main engine for discovery of new lead molecules with potential for disease efficacy. This empirical screening method resulted in the discovery and publication (Science, 1991) of the first ‘prototype’, non-peptide small molecule inhibitor of Substance P at the Neurokinin-1 (NK1) receptor. This discovery led to the marketed drug Emend (aprepitant), proven to be effective for the treatment/prevention of nausea and vomiting post-surgery or chemotherapy. Dr. Snider was involved in pre-marketing approval for the drug Lamictal (lamotrigine) while at Burroughs Wellcome. The last 15 years of Dr. Snider’s career were spent at Berlex, the U.S. subsidiary of Schering AG in Berlin (currently Bayer), where he led a group of 28 scientists supporting the HTS-driven discovery of new lead compounds. This group also performed secondary characterization and selectivity testing during Med-Chem optimization efforts. His group at Berlex was also responsible for maintenance and distribution of the screening library of 200,000 compounds used by the worldwide Schering AG organization. Dr. Snider received his PhD from the College of Pharmacy in 1982 under the guidance of Drs. Burkman, Feller, Patil, Rahwan, Uretsky and Gerald. He then completed a postdoctoral Fellowship at The Mayo Clinic before receiving an academic appointment the University of Michigan.
I would like to acknowledge the faculty in Pharmacology at Ohio State, who led me to have the knowledge and broad and deep understanding of pharmacology, which I used for my entire career.
The Distinguished Alumni Award
Recipients must have a degree from the College of Pharmacy or completed postgraduate training; have made distinguished contributions in the fields of public health and public service; have performed outstanding activities in the interest of the college and its students; and have an outstanding record in the profession of pharmacy.
Kelly A. Brock, PharmD
Dr. Kelly Brock is the executive director of the Community Pharmacy Foundation (CPF), a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing community pharmacy practice. Dr. Brock was selected to lead CPF in 2021. She is honored to lead an organization that has funded over 17 million dollars in grants and projects since it was founded. After graduating from the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy in 2002, she completed a Pharmacy Practice Residency at The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. Dr. Brock was one of the country’s first PGY1 community-based pharmacy residents. After completing her residency, she accepted a newly developed academic position to help advance community pharmacy practice. In 2010, Dr. Brock founded KB Pharmacy Solutions, Inc., a healthcare consulting company. As a consultant, Dr. Brock trained thousands of pharmacists to administer vaccines and served as a writer for the APhA Pharmacy Based Immunization Delivery Program. She has served as a project manager for several national projects, including the APhA Foundation’s Project IMPACT Immunizations, which received the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Pharmacy Practice Improvement Award in 2018. Dr. Brock served as a liaison to the federal government, helping coordinate the COVID-19 vaccine response in California during the pandemic. Her passion for supporting community pharmacists led her to serve as a practice transformation coach and team lead for Flip the Pharmacy (FtP)™, a multimillion-dollar practice transformation initiative funded by CPF. Dr. Brock has been recognized by the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy with the Genesis Award for her accomplishments in pharmacy practice and exceptional service to her community, the college, the profession and the public.
I wish I wasn’t standing here alone because this award is the reflection of the people who I met along my journey and have inspired and mentored me. I really wouldn’t be here today without the influence, patience and guidance of so many.
Siraj Dhanani, B. Pharmacy, MS ’95, MBA
Siraj Dhanani is the founder and CEO of InnAccel Technologies, a MedTech company and India’s only manufacturing platform with a diverse portfolio of innovative, IP-protected, medical devices. At InnAccel, Dhanani spearheads product development, commercial strategy, team management and financing operations. Dhanani has worked in a variety of settings ranging from a small consulting company to some of the largest pharmaceutical companies on Wall Street. His first entrepreneurial venture PharmARC, a knowledge processing outsourcing firm focused on pharma and health care verticals. In his role in the company, he was involved in recruiting, team management, project execution, sales and client management. Dhanani graduated with a Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Bombay before enrolling in The Ohio State University’s MS/HSPAL program under the President’s Fellowship in 1995. He then graduated with a MBA from New York University.
Dhanani was unable to be at the awards ceremony, and the college accepted the award on his behalf.
Jerry L. Hudec, JD, BS ’67
Jerry Hudec is receiving this award posthumously. Hudec’s career spanned retail, hospital and ambulatory pharmacy, as well as managed care where he started a mail-order pharmacy. In between leadership roles in pharmacy, Hudec practiced law in San Diego and founded and ran a real estate company. A loyal and generous philanthropist, Hudec has had a substantial impact on the college through an estate gift that will significantly increase the college’s endowment, providing generations of support for future students and researchers. Hudec’s giving also included two endowed scholarships for professional scholarships that generate nearly a full-tuition scholarship each year, plus significant giving to the college’s general fund. Hudec graduated with his BS in pharmacy from Ohio State in 1967 and his JD from Cleveland State University in 1971.
Hudec’s wife, Jody, accepted the award on Jerry’s behalf.
Jerry was tenacious at giving 100% to meet his goals…He was very modest and quiet, but when he talked he was brilliant. He told me many times that he appreciated that OSU gave Jerry the skills necessary to have a successful life. I don’t have the words to thank you enough for the honor you are bestowing upon him.
Outstanding Community Engagement Award
This award recognizes an alumnus from any training or academic program of the College of Pharmacy for outstanding accomplishments in the community. Recipients have been involved in outreach and engagement that includes collaboration with one or more community partners who may be public and/or private sector, local to global and external to the university. This work must have provided valuable learning experiences for students and/or demonstrated impact that addresses an important need.
Chirag Thakkar, PharmD ’14
Dr. Chirag Thakkar is an ambulatory care pharmacist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Prior to his role at NCH, Dr. Thakkar worked as a pharmacist and pharmacy manager for Giant Eagle for more than 13 years, where he precepted IPPE, APPE and exchange students for Ohio State. Dr. Thakkar is passionate about educating students, patients and the community on the safe use of medication. He held asthma education programs to educate patients on the appropriate use of inhalers, volunteered to speak to high school students about the dangers of misusing medications and hosted Ohio Senator Kunze at Giant Eagle to discuss the importance of neighborhood pharmacies. Dr. Thakkar regularly volunteers at Columbus area free clinics including Physicians CareConnection and an Asian Free Clinic. While volunteering, Dr. Thakkar precepts students and works to ensure students understand how to provide care to uninsured/underinsured patients with language barriers, cultural barriers and limited access to the health care system. Dr. Thakkar received his PharmD degree from Ohio State in 2014.
I define leadership as doing more than what is asked of you. I learned that with some help. I would like to thank the Ohio State College of Pharmacy for providing the culture and the environment where I learned the true meaning of leadership. It was at the college that I learned that being a pharmacist was not just passing the exams, it is more - it is doing more than what is asked of you.
