NCPA Foundation Scholarships
The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) Foundation is pleased to announce the continuation of its Scholarship Program. Student members of NCPA are eligible to apply. See application materials on the NCPA Foundation Website for detailed information. Documents must be postmarked by March 15, 2012.
As of 2/14/2012, the following scholarships are available:
- Presidential Scholarships
- Partners in Pharmacy
- J.C. and Rheba Cobb Memorial Scholarship for Excellence in Government Affairs
- Neil Pruitt Sr. Memorial Scholarship for Entrepreneurism
- Willard B. Simmons Memorial Scholarship for Pharmacy Management
Please visit www.ncpafoundation.org for more information and make sure to make your chapter members aware of this scholarship opportunity!
NCPA Outstanding Student Member of the Year Award
Each active NCPA student chapter may nominate one NCPA Chapter member for NCPA Outstanding Student Member of the Year. This individual must be an active member of NCPA who has contributed to the continued success of their NCPA student chapter. Each recipient will receive a certificate from the NCPA Foundation in recognition of this award to be presented to the student at an appropriate awards ceremony at their School/College of Pharmacy. Click here to download an application form.
NCPA Foundation Faculty Liaison of the Year
The NCPA Outstanding Faculty Liaison of the Year Award recognizes a faculty liaison who demonstrates exceptional leadership and commitment to independent pharmacy, his/her NCPA Student Chapter, and the community. Download a Nomination Form for NCPA Foundation Faculty Member of the Year and nominate your outstanding faculty liaison by March 30, 2012!
10 Ideas for Promoting Independent Community Pharmacy
Promoting independent community pharmacy within your School/College of Pharmacy and your community is an important component of any active NCPA student chapter. Below are ten ideas from current NCPA student chapters used in the fall semester to promote community pharmacy.
- Invite a local pharmacy owner to speak to your chapter about their pharmacy and experiences as a pharmacy owner. Use NCPA's Ambassador Program to locate an owner near your School/College of Pharmacy who would be willing to make a visit. Contact studentaffairs@ncpanet.org to identify NCPA members in your area. If you already have a local pharmacy owner who visits your chapter, reach out to other owners and start an independent pharmacy speaker series at your chapter meetings. Invite non-NCPA members to attend and learn more about pharmacy ownership.
- Schedule a pharmacy visit to a local independent pharmacy in your town. Contact a local pharmacy owner and ask if they would be willing to provide a tour of the pharmacy to a group of students who would like to learn more about their unique pharmacy services. Ask the pharmacist what size group is manageable and break down the tour into smaller groups and/or visit multiple pharmacies if a large number of students are interested.
- Host a Community Pharmacy Residency Panel. Invite past-residents of local community pharmacy residency programs to offer information on their programs, the process of obtaining a residency, their experiences while going through the program, and how the residency prepared them for their current role.
- There are over 23,000 independent community pharmacies in the United States. At each chapter meeting "spotlight" a different independent community pharmacy. Discuss the unique qualities of that pharmacy and how it serves the community. America's Pharmacist, NCPA's monthly publication, can help you indentify new pharmacies to discuss for each meeting.
- Attend the NCPA Annual Convention in October. Learn about pharmacy ownership and the most important issues affecting community pharmacy by sitting in on student-specific programming, attending general sessions and continuing education sessions, watching the live Business Plan Competition, participating in the Community Pharmacy Residency Showcase, presenting a poster on the business plan your chapter submitted to the Business Plan Competition, and most importantly, socializing and networking with your peers and pharmacy owners!
- Partner with a local community pharmacy to provide health screenings, brown bag sessions, drug disposal events, and/or other health care services. Contact NCPA for a Health Fair "How to" guide.
- Host a pinning ceremony during the fall semester where each new NCPA member is provided with an NCPA enamel lapel pin to wear on their white coat. See the Student section of the NCPA website under Student Chapter Resources for a pin order form. Invite an NCPA owner member to speak at the ceremony and talk about their experience with pharmacy ownership and NCPA.
- Host a round table discussion with local pharmacy owners where students can interact with current pharmacy owners and managers on various topics such as special pharmacy niches, marketing, and other components of a business plan.
- Host a Meet and Greet with local community pharmacy owners and student pharmacists at your School/College of Pharmacy to directly mingle with pharmacy owners and learn about the pathway to ownership. Include a reception for the attendees and invite a guest speaker to address the group.
- Write an article for your School/College of Pharmacy Newsletter about a community service project or event hosted by your NCPA student chapter. You may even want to create your own NCPA Student Chapter Newsletter to highlight your chapter's participation in community service projects, promoting independent pharmacy, and dates for upcoming events, etc. For an example of a current bi-annual Student Chapter Newsletter from an NCPA Student Chapter, contacat NCPA student affairs at studentaffairs@ncpanet.org.
Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition
Business plan teams have less than three months to work on their plans for the 2012 Business Plan Competition! The Competition helps young pharmacy entrepreneurs develop the blueprint necessary for buying an existing independent community pharmacy or developing a new pharmacy. You could also win a trip to the 2012 NCPA Annual Convention in San Diego, CA and the 2013 Multiple Locations Conference in a tropical location!
Please visit the Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition section on the NCPA website for an application, details of the competition, and resources, or for questions, contact student affairs at studentaffairs@ncpanet.org. The postmark deadline for business plan entries is May 15, 2012.
