Published: May 16, 2008 03:35 pm      

Milestone for a dream — Pharmacy college graduates charter class

It began with an idea and aspiration for the old Garden High School in Buchanan County. On Saturday, that dream came to fruition with the graduation of the charter class of the University of Appalachia’s College of Pharmacy.

First conceived in 2004, and opening its doors to students a year later, the UACP offers Virginia’s only accelerated doctor of pharmacy program.

The goal of the school is simple, yet vital to the well-being of future generations of those who reside in the coalfields. Its purpose is to create local jobs, provide higher education opportunities for the region’s best and brightest students and provide rural health care services in conjunction with other health education schools, agencies and medical care facilities.

Graduates of the school are qualified to sit for the national boards and be licensed in all states.

The creation of the school of pharmacy was spurred by the success of the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy.

“It was a passion, and it became an obsession to get it up and going and stabilized,” UACP Founder Frank Kilgore told the Daily Telegraph last year, when detailing the hectic but exciting development of the university.

“I was panicked so much about our deadline, and everything we needed to do” Kilgore said. “So I got up every morning at 3 a.m., and started working on it.”

In 2007, Kilgore turned the reins of the higher education facility over to the university’s president and dean, Dr. Eleanor Sue Cantrell, who served as master of ceremonies at Saturday’s commencement. Cantrell has been quick to commend the community for its vision and support of the university.

“I believe it is a strong program, and I believe the school has a bright future,” she told the Daily Telegraph. “There is a tremendous need for pharmacists in our country. This will help.”

In the spring of 2007, UACP had 128 first- and second-year pharmacy students enrolled, and another 65 students began classes last August.

Last year, more than 1,000 students applied to the college. Although it is currently not ready to enroll such a large number of students that, too, is another goal for the future.

“My dream is that Buchanan County will some day host one thousand students in graduate or undergraduate programs,” Kilgore said. “I’m just really enthused about Buchanan County, and the fact that the Board of Supervisors have decided to do something innovative.”

We share Kilgore and Cantrell’s enthusiasm for UACP’s success, and commend all those who worked tirelessly to ensure the dream of the university became a reality.

And we must also commend Kilgore, whose strength and tenacity not only helped build the university, but made it another beacon of success in the ongoing revitalization of Buchanan County.

This graduation of the charter class at the UACP is a milestone for the university’s students and staff, as well as all those who reside in Southwest Virginia.

Kilgore referred to the university’s graduates as “optimistic pioneers that helped us realize a dream.”

We agree, and salute them along with the university’s founders and current staff for their success.

Their achievement is one of which we can all be proud.