Sandra Steele, Educational Consultant

Butler Receives Largest Gift in Our History from Lilly Endowment Inc.

Grant will help College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences focus on public health and wellness

Butler University, Wednesday, Dec. 13, received its largest gift ever, a $25 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to support the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Expansion Project, which will add public health initiatives, integrate health education across the curriculum, recruit and retain high-caliber pharmacy faculty, and provide students and faculty with opportunities to work with diverse populations.

“This project supports our aspirations for pharmacy as well as our commitments to academic excellence, diversity and service to community that are the cornerstones of the Butler University strategic plan,” said Butler President Bobby Fong.

The role of the pharmacist has expanded from dispenser to one that promotes wellness, educates patients and assumes responsibility for the optimal uses of medications. Pharmacy programs across the country are being challenged to broaden their focus to include public health, with the proactive goal of protecting and improving health.

Butler in recent years has built a reputation among pharmacy programs for its wellness initiatives. The university hired new faculty for whom wellness issues are the primary interest and focus of their research. The university also launched the award-winning Healthy Horizons in 2004, a program that promotes health literacy and wellness among all Butler employees.

The grant affords the university the opportunity to further expand these programs and infuse wellness and public health concerns in both the classroom and experiential learning.

“By expanding the college’s focus on wellness and public health, we will give distinction to academic offerings of the college and greatly enrich the educational and professional opportunities afforded to students and faculty,” said Mary Andritz, dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

The grant also provides the necessary funding to construct a Health Education Center. The center will provide space needed for the College’s Healthy Horizons Lab and Drug Information Center as well as instructional laboratories for clinical assessment, health education and health literacy education.

“The Health Education Center will help educate our students about the principles of health promotion and disease prevention, as well as furnish opportunities for practice in the community,” said Andritz.

The Health Education Center was a priority of the $125 million ButlerRising campaign. The campaign, which is slated to run through 2009, has now raised more than $103 million.

Through the grant, the university will also develop several new opportunities for students to work with diverse populations. One example includes students spending a minimum of four weeks at an experiential site in an area designated as medically underserved. Students will be asked to reflect on the impact of public policy, socioeconomic status and cultural and ethnic diversity on health care options available in these communities.

To retain and recruit top-quality pharmacy faculty, the university will develop community-based, postdoctoral pharmacy residency programs that focus on public health. It will also offer opportunities for faculty development in areas of practice or scholarship, and provide the necessary start-up funds and equipment for research in the area of public health.

“The result of this public health and wellness focus will be a larger number of pharmacists who can effectively promote health improvement as well as provide patient-centered pharmaceutical care in community pharmacies, clinics and hospitals,” said Andritz. “Butler will be known for producing graduates who are leaders in wellness initiatives.”