Shilan Scholarship

A Bridge to Empower Pharmacists to Enhance Patient Care Outcomes

Offering scholarships to pharmacists to pursue additional credentials that lead to specialized services and improved patient outcomes.

 

A memorial scholarship fund has been established in honor and memory of John C. Shilan, PharmD. The scholarship fund will make awards to selected pharmacists who have demonstrated an interest in added credentials enabling them to provide specialized patient care services based on additional knowledge and skill. “John’s young life was cut way too short; but this scholarship will keep John’s name and spirit alive in the future, by helping pharmacists enhance patient care outcomes… just as John would have done,” said Kelly Hasty Kale, Past-President of the VPhA Foundation.

 

The intent of the John C. Shilan Scholarship is to enable pharmacists to achieve added credentials for specialized patient care services that enhance desired patient outcomes and create new models of pharmacy practice that, by example, can be emulated by other pharmacists.

  • Applicants must have graduated from an accredited school of pharmacy. Priority will be given to Virginia schools of pharmacy.
  • Applicants must submit letters of interest with resume and/or CV that include all elements described in the Application Instructions below.
  • Applicants must specify how the specified additional credential will serve Virginians
  • Membership in VPhA is encouraged. Priority will be given to those with membership.
  • The scholarship award may only be used for post-graduate training and certification of eligible credentials (as identified below).
  • The scholarship is a one-time award of $1,000: $500 is payable directly to the pharmacist upon selection by the Shilan Scholarship Committee, and $500 is payable directly to the pharmacist upon submission of documentation of achievement of the credentials.
  • From the date the scholarship is accepted by the recipient, the Foundation expects the award recipient to: achieve the added credential within a period of time not to exceed 18 months. Additional time may be allotted of required by the specific credentialing program.
  • Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Early submissions will be given priority while all candidates who submit by December, 31 will be reviewed by January 15.

Recognition of Scholarship Recipients

Scholarship recipients with their new earned credentials will be listed on a permanent plaque maintained in the VPhA Foundation headquarters and on the VPhA Foundation web pages, and announced each year at the VPhA annual convention when the new scholarship award recipient is made public.

 

                                              2019 Recipient                                                     

Alexis Page, PharmD, BCACP

2018 Recipient

Alyssa Zavadsky, PharmD, BCACP

2017 Recipient

Amy Sparkman, PharmD, BCACP
Kroger

2015 Recipient

Andrea L. Brookhart

Andrea L. Brookhart, PharmD, BCACP
District B Clinical Coordinator
Kroger Mid-Atlantic Division

2016 Recipient

Jennifer Trotter

Jennifer Trotter, PharmD, BCACP
Mountain States Medical Group
East Tennessee State University, Bill Gatton College of Pharmacy


2014 Recipient

Megan B. Ellmers

Megan B. Ellmers, PharmD, BCACP
Ambulatory Care Clinical Pharmacist Specialist
Sentara RMH Medical Group

 

Eligible Credentials

The scholarship award may only be used for post-graduate training and certification of eligible credentials:

Pharmacist-Only Certifications

  • Ambulatory Care: Board-Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist (BCACP)
  • Cardiology: Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist with Added Qualifications in Cardiology
  • Compounded Sterile Preparations Pharmacy
  • Critical Care Pharmacy
  • Emergency Medicine Pharmacy
  • Geriatrics: Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (CGP)
  • Infectious Disease: Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist with Added Qualifications in Infectious Disease
  • Nuclear Pharmacy: Board-Certified Nuclear Pharmacist (BCNP)
  • Nutrition Support: Board-Certified Nutrition Support Pharmacist (BCNSP)
  • Oncology Pharmacy: Board-Certified Oncology Pharmacist (BCOP)
  • Pediatric Pharmacy
  • Pharmacotherapy: Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS)
  • Psychiatric Pharmacy: Board-Certified Psychiatric Pharmacist (BCPP)
  • Solid Organ Transplantation Pharmacy

Multidisciplinary Certifications

  • Anticoagulation Care: Certified Anticoagulation Care Provider (CACP)
  • Asthma Education: Certified Asthma Education (AE-C)
  • Cardiovascular/Life Support: Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS); Pediatric Cardiovascular Life Support (PALS)
  • Clinical Pharmacology: Accredited in Applied Pharmacology (AP)
  • Diabetes Education: Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE)
  • Diabetes Management-Advanced: Board-Certified Advanced Diabetes Management (BC-ADM)
  • HIV/AIDS:
    • HIV SpecialistTM (AAHIVS)
    • HIV Expert (AAHIVE)
    • HIV Pharmacist (AAHIVP)
  • Health Information Technology:
    • Certified Professional in Electronic Health Records (CPEHR)
    • Certified Professional in Health Information Technology (CPHIT)
    • Certified Professional in Health Information Exchange (CPHIE)
    • Certified Professional for Operating Rules Administration (CPORA)
  • Lipids: Clinical Lipid Specialist (CLS)
  • Nutrition Support: Certified Nutrition Support Clinician (CNSC)
  • Pain Education: Credentialed Pain Educator (CPE)
  • Pain Management: Credentialed Pain Practitioner (CPP)
  • Poison Information: Certified Specialist in Poison Information (CSPI)
  • Toxicology: Diplomate of the American Board of Applied Toxicology (DABAT)

Other post-graduate certifications are subject to approval by the Shilan Scholarship Selection Committee. However, immunization administration and CPR/AED certifications are not eligible for this scholarship program.

Application Instructions

Applications will be due December 31st. Applicants will submit the following information:

  • Cover letter (~ 2-3 pages) to include, but not be limited to:
    • Added credential sought
    • Description of planned use of the added credential to offer specialized patient care services
    • Training source and cost; credentialing body and cost of examination
    • Anticipated timeline to attain and use the added credential to provide patient care services
    • Tentative plans to share these patient care services and outcomes with the media and fellow colleagues
  • Attached CV and/or resume to include, but not be limited to:
    • Preferred current contact information, including full name, permanent mailing address of residence, phone(s), primary and alternate email addresses
    • School/college of pharmacy from which graduated and year of graduation
    • Pharmacists licensure information
    • Current employment in Virginia, including practice site name, address/phone, position title, scope of responsibilities, supervisor, duration
    • Previous employment, including practice site name, address/phone, position title, scope of responsibilities, supervisor, duration

 

Support

Tax-deductible contributions by pharmacists and friends of the profession will provide support for the John C. Shilan Scholarship Fund.  Make your tax-deductible contribution, large or small, to the VPhA Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation.  Thank you.

The VPhA Foundation is an IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exempt educational foundation, Tax ID#54-1142544. A financial statement is available upon written request from the Office of Charitable and Regulatory Programs, Commonwealth of Virginia, P.O. Box 1163, Virginia 23218.