Angie Choi becomes Director of Admissions for College of Pharmacy
The College’s Director of Admissions, Angie Choi, MA, recently accepted a new position at the UAMS College of Pharmacy as Director of Admissions, effective Oct. 20. Ms. Choi joined the COPH’s then Office of Student Services (later renamed Office of Student Affairs) in April 2012. We wish her the very best in her new role!
Lydia McDonald accepts position at new state college
Don’t miss the chance to congratulate and wish Lydia McDonald, EdD, farewell before she leaves UAMS to take a new job as Associate Dean for Student Affairs at the new Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine, which is being developed in Fort Smith.
In her new position, Dr. McDonald will be responsible for administration of student affairs, including student health insurance, financial aid, recruitment, admissions, student orientation, registrar functions, student activities, student counseling and discipline.
Dr. McDonald joined COPH in October 2008 as the Director of the Office of Student Services (later renamed Office of Student Affairs). When she was awarded her EdD in September 2011, she became an Instructor in the COPH Department of Health Behavior and Health Education and the Assistant for Student Affairs.
A farewell party for Dr. McDonald is planned for Oct. 29 from 1 pm to 3 pm in COPH Room 2280.
Sharla Smith accepts position at University of Kansas
Congratulations to Sharla Smith, Ph.D., MPH, Instructor in the COPH Department of Health Policy and Management (HPM), who has accepted a position, beginning Nov. 10, at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita. She will be an Assistant Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health. She also has been selected as a Public Health Practitioner Fellow.
Dr. Smith is truly “one of our own” who earned her MPH and then doctoral degree at UAMS as she moved up the professional ranks as research staff at UAMS. She has worked at UAMS for more than 10 years, starting in 2003 as a Research Technician II at the Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy.
In 2006, she joined HPM as a Research Assistant and then served as a Research Associate and Project Manager for Dr. Glen Mays, who at the time was HPM Chair. She joined HPM faculty in November 2013, after completion of her Ph.D. in Health Systems Research at UAMS in spring 2013. She earned an MPH from UAMS in 2004 and a bachelor’s degree in biology from University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in 2000.
Dr. Smith will be able to make good use of her expertise in public health services and systems research and practice-based research networks. In her new position as faculty and a fellow, she will assist and collaborate with investigators in the medical school departments and residency programs with the design and analysis of basic, behavioral and clinical research projects. She will also serve as a consultant on grants, manuscripts, and proposals and establish partnerships with local health departments in Kansas, working with the Kansas Association of Local Health Departments, with a goal of enhancing capacity for accreditation among local health departments.
An Oct. 31 farewell celebration is planned for our long-time colleague, who will be missed!