Lunch with a leader

U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis visited the UF College of Pharmacy in February, meeting with Dean Julie Johnson, students and program leaders before making a presentation to student pharmacists.

Student pharmacists invited a U.S. congressman to the UF College of Pharmacy in February for an exchange on pharmacy education and national policymaking. As leaders in the American Pharmacists Association’s Academy of Student Pharmacists, Amy Kiskaddon, past president, and Amy Shook, current president, invited Rep. Gus Bilirakis of the 12th Congressional District to address their UF classmates. Dean Julie A. Johnson, Pharm.D., invited Bilirakis, joined by three student leaders and several clinical pharmacy faculty members, to a brief lunch roundtable, where the educators described an array of roles in today’s pharmacy practice. The congressman closed the afternoon visit with a 45-minute presentation to more than 150 student pharmacists. He spoke about the importance of advocacy, advising students to voice their support of a bill early in the process and to consider a growing need for health care professionals to serve in government. Shown here are Johnson (front) and Bilirakis with students Amy Kiskaddon, Samantha Roughton and Amy Shook (from left) and faculty members (back) Tom Munyer, Sven Normann and John Gums.