Sybil Richard

Sybil Richard bio coming soon.

Joseph Washington was raised by his mother Katherine Williams-Washington along with his brother in the Florida city, Putnam Hall. There he was instilled with the values of dedication and hard work. During his childhood he obtained his first exposure to medicine, from his mother who is a practicing Registered Nurse. His collegiate career includes an Associates of Arts degree in General studies from Santa Fe State College in 2015, where he was awarded a full scholarship to serve as a Student Ambassador. After earning his degree, he decided to pursue professional school. His choice of Pharmacy was clear. He continued along the pre-pharmacy track to achieve the prerequisites necessary to enter the Doctor of Pharmacy program at the University of Florida College of Pharmacy; with an expected graduation of 2021.

While in professional school he has participated in many extracurricular activities, that promote the profession of pharmacy, equip him to pursue his dreams of advocating for Global Health issues and establish him as a student leader. He has served as the Operation Immunization Chair of the University of Florida Chapter of ‘SNPhA’, performed research on the importance of Community Health Workers in the lives of minorities battling chronic health conditions, is a Student Ambassador for the College of Pharmacy, Professional Development Chairman of the Gamma Sigma chapter of Kappa Psi Pharmaceutical Fraternity Incorporated, and past trip leader of Project Audiology – a medical outreach to Merida, Mexico. He currently is in his third year of work at Publix Pharmacy as an Intern, where he enjoys educating patients on disease states and side effects. Along with resolving adjudication claims and maintaining a steady workflow in the pharmacy, Joseph considers it a blessing and a tremendous honor to be elected by the SNPhA student body as the 2019-2020 National President-Elect! He is motivated to increase the access of members to the necessary tools to build chapters and effect change in a sundry of settings. He is committed to SNPhA’s objectives and promoting the profession of pharmacy through purpose-driven action and the unity of the SNPham!

Aliyah Cruz is a third year Doctor of Pharmacy Candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy. She is originally from Havelock-Cherry Point, North Carolina, which is a small military base on the coast of North Carolina. It was her experience growing up as a Latinx female in a predominately white, southern, rural town where she learned how diverse the underserved community could really be. Her encounters with socioeconomic poverty and language barriers within her family helped push her towards a path that serviced those that could not receive equitable and holistic healthcare.

Upon entering pharmacy school, Aliyah knew that she wanted to be involved in her community and serve not only the underserved, but also help promote minority healthcare professionals that she did not see growing up. Following this mission, Aliyah quickly joined SNPhA as it highlighted these two pillars in their mission statement. In SNPhA, she was able to quickly find her passion in advocacy and became the delegate for her local chapter, successfully defending two resolutions at the National Convention that year. From there, Aliyah was able to serve as the National Fighting Diabetes Chair, resulting in the highest number of student participants and events for the 2019-2020 year. Her time in this role allowed her to understand how passionate SNPhA members are, and what energy they would need from a national board to continue the amazing work they do on the ground.

Outside of SNPhA, Aliyah works at UNC Health as a Medication History Specialist as well as serves as teaching assistant for two courses at her program. She holds outside leadership positions in the Student Health Action Coalition (SHAC), where she helps facilitate chronic care management screenings for the Latinx population and homeless community, as well as in Phi Lambda Sigma (PLS), where she serves as chapter president.

Aliyah is honored to serve as the SNPhA National President-Elect for the 2020 – 2021 year. In this role, she hopes to promote chapter bonding both within regions and across regions, along with continuing to grow the relationship between SNPhA and NPhA in the next two years.

New Practitioner’s Network Chair

Starr Shands, PharmD

Gallup, NM

Dr. Starr Shands is a native of Stony Creek, Virginia, a small town 45 min outside of Richmond, VA. She is currently an ambulatory care Clinical Pharmacist at Gallup Indian Medical Center under Indian Health Services (IHS) in Gallup, New Mexico. She serves the Native American population for different tribes such as the Navajo, Zuni, and Hopi. Dr. Shands graduated with her Pharm.D from Hampton University in May 2018. She is a mentor/resource to pharmacy students in different spaces like Pharmacy Initiative Leaders (PILs), Inc., [a non-profit corporation which seeks to establish quality connections within the pharmacy profession and serve as a premier resource for the success of aspiring pharmacists]; and the Pharmacy Student Mentorship Program under NPhA/SNPhA. She was recently appointed to the Board of Directors for the National Pharmaceutical Association as the New Practitioners Network co-chair for the 2020-2022 term. Dr. Shands currently has experience in ambulatory care, mail order pharmacy, behavioral health, family medicine, internal medicine and medication reconciliation. In her spare time, she loves to mentor students, get involved in pharmacy organization work initiatives, and work on ways to live a healthier lifestyle overall. Her goals in her career is to impact the lives of her patients in a positive way and make a difference in the communities she serves.

Vanessa Ejiofor, PharmD is a native of northern New Jersey who obtained her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the Nesbitt School of Pharmacy at Wilkes University in Wilkes-Barre, PA. After graduation, she completed a PGY-1 pharmacy practice residency at Mount Sinai St. Luke’s and Mount Sinai West hospitals in New York City, NY. During her residency, she obtained her teaching certificate from the Arnold & Marie Schwartz College of Pharmacy at Long Island University (Brooklyn Campus) in New York City, NY. Currently, she practices as a clinical staff pharmacist at the VA New Jersey Health Care System where she gets to serve U.S. veterans through different pharmacist roles in the inpatient and outpatient settings.

During pharmacy school, Vanessa was involved in a few pharmaceutical organizations, including American Pharmacists Association, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and Pediatrics Pharmacy Advocacy Group. She also chartered the new Student National Pharmaceutical Association (SNPhA) chapter at Wilkes University and was the first chapter president to serve on their executive board. She was able to expose her fellow students and faculty to new opportunities in which they could serve underserved communities, as well as, highlight diversity in the pharmacy profession. Vanessa is passionate about promoting patient safety, increasing health literacy, providing cost-effective ways to obtain quality healthcare, and establishing trust with her patients. She is also a member of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

In her leisure time, Dr. Ejiofor enjoys sewing clothes, listening to music, traveling, fitness, and spending time with family and friends. Overall, she is motivated to provide guidance and resources to the new pharmacy practitioners as they each embark on their unique professional journeys.

Clinical Initiatives Coordinator

Dr. Jacqueise Unonu

Dr. Meagan Brown is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Coordinator of Community Pharmacy Development with the Division of Pharmacy Professional Development, within the University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy in Jackson, Mississippi. She earned a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Xavier University of Louisiana’s College of Pharmacy in 2010. Upon graduation, Dr. Brown completed a PGY-1 Community Pharmacy Practice Residency and joined faculty immediately upon finishing.

Her clinical practice site is mainly a federally-qualified health center in rural Mississippi, where she provides clinical services to patients under grant funding focused on cardiometabolic diseases. Additionally, she is the primary residency preceptor for the independent pharmacy experience, and helps resident pharmacists develop clinical services in this setting as well. In the classroom, Dr. Brown’s coursework is mainly focused on chronic disease and developing coursework around rural health.

She currently serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Task Force within the School of Pharmacy, search committees for faculty and state organizations, course committees, and many committees with other national pharmacy organizations and state organizations- Mississippi Society of Health Systems Pharmacists (Secretary), Magnolia State Pharmaceutical Society, and Mississippi Pharmacists Association.

Dr. Brown is an active member in her community- serving on her health ministry at New Jerusalem Church, a 2017 Honoree of Best Dressed Jackson with the American Cancer Society, a member of the Circle of Red for the Metro Jackson Chapter of the American Heart Association, an active member of the Junior League of Jackson, and founding board member of the Jackson Professional Group. She enjoys spending time with her friends and family- especially her loving husband, Dr. Terrence H. Brown and three children- Joshua, Tristin, and Mason.

Dr. Sienna Miller obtained her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Presbyterian College School of Pharmacy in Clinton, South Carolina. During pharmacy school Sienna was an active member of SNPhA, serving on many committees providing forums (HIV, diabetes, stroke prevention) and completing clinical skills competitions. Later, Sienna completed a Pharmacy Practice Residency at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Throughout her residency, Sienna developed the skills to provide excellent care to patients and create valuable relationships with patients and providers.

Since completing residency, Sienna has been practicing in an ambulatory outpatient clinic setting in Arizona. Within the clinic, Sienna strives in providing safe, effective, and compassionate care to each patient, drawing from multiple specialties for a well-rounded approach. Sienna is also dedicated to giving patients the tools and resources needed to manage chronic disease states, including face-to-face counseling, medication management, transitions of care, barrier identification, and problem-solving skills. Sienna is also a member of American Society of Health-System Pharmacists and Arizona Pharmacy Association, currently serving as Director-at-Large.

In her spare time Sienna enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, exercising, and watching sports. Dr. Miller is excited for the new opportunity to provide a positive impact to new practitioners to help enhance their pharmacy career.

Dr. April M Robinson is a native of Orangeburg, South Carolina. She completed her Bachelors of Science in chemistry from Furman University, before receiving her Doctor of Pharmacy Degree from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). At MUSC she served as the Community Service Chair in the Student National Pharmaceutical Association (SNPhA), Treasurer of Phi Lambda Sigma, Secretary of the Multicultural Student Advisory Board, and President of the MUSC Honor Council. She completed her PGY-1 pharmacy practice residency at Greenville Hospital System in Greenville, South Carolina.

Dr. Robinson is now an Associate Professor at Wingate University School of Pharmacy (WUSOP) and is a Board Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist. Her teaching includes lectures in the Cardiology pharmacotherapy module, the Pharmaceutical care course, and she is the coordinator of the Doctoral Candidate Seminar course. She precepts third and fourth year professional students on their adult internal medicine rotations at Carolinas Medical Center-Union (Atrium Health) in Monroe, NC. Additionally she serves as the SNPhA Advisor at WUSOP. Outside of NPhA, Dr. Robinson maintains membership in the American College of Clinical Pharmacy. She is also an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. where she is the graduate advisor to an undergraduate chapter. In her spare time she enjoys traveling and spoiling her niece and nephew.