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Looking back, Dunn estimated he’s taught approximately 3,000 students.
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College of Pharmacy’s Eddie Dunn, Pharm.D., Receives APA Lifetime Achievement Award
| In recognition of his decades of service to pharmacy education and the profession, the Arkansas Pharmacists Association (APA) recently recognized Eddie Dunn, Pharm.D., with its highest honor — a Lifetime Achievement Award.
The award caps a 31-year career as an educator for Dunn, a professor of pharmacy practice with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ (UAMS) College of Pharmacy.
Dunn speaks after accepting the award, which was a complete surprise for him.
“Congratulations to Dr. Eddie Dunn on this well-deserved APA Lifetime Achievement Award,” said John Vinson, Pharm.D., APA CEO and executive vice president. “His dedication to student pharmacists as a beloved professor and community pharmacist has left a lasting legacy. His impact on generations of pharmacists and patients alike is truly inspiring.”
“Words cannot adequately describe the impact that Eddie has had on generations of pharmacists, and by extension the impact on the health of so many people within their care,” said Dean Cindy Stowe, Pharm.D. “Eddie leads with joy and has left indelible marks on every student he’s taught. He is an educator who transforms paths and leaves people forever changed.”
“This award is a fitting recognition of Dr. Dunn’s extraordinary commitment to education and dedication to our profession for many decades,” said Amy Franks, Pharm.D., professor and chair of the college’s Department of Pharmacy Practice. “He has an unparalleled ability to connect with students and maintain those connections for life. Eddie’s energy and commitment have made a lasting impact across the state, and I couldn’t be happier for him to be honored in this way.”
Dunn has spent much of his life involved with the College of Pharmacy. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy at UAMS in 1979. After graduation, he left to run Dunn Pharmacy in North Little Rock until 1992, when he returned to the college as a part-time instructor of pharmaceutics and also spent a couple of years as a poison control specialist with the college-run Arkansas Poison and Drug Information Center. He earned his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from UAMS in 1994, joined the college full-time as an assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences that same year, and has been a mainstay in the college ever since.
Receiving the award was a complete surprise for Dunn, who’s keeping it all in perspective.
“I’ve taught a lot of classes and taught a lot of students,” Dunn said. “It’s nice to be recognized. It means everything to me. It’s really an honor to get it, and I’m so happy.”
As he nears the end of his teaching career, Dunn said he will always be grateful for former College of Pharmacy Dean Larry Milne, Ph.D., who died in 2022. “I wouldn’t have this job without Larry Milne,” Dunn said. “He was my dean when I was in school in the 70s, and he hired me in 1992. If it hadn’t been for Dean Milne, I don’t know that I would’ve been up here or not. I really owe everything to him.”
Over the course of his career, Dunn has seen many changes in the profession: a large influx of female pharmacists in a formerly male-dominated profession, the advent of computers and the still-evolving role of pharmacists to provide accessible significant patient care.
Pharmacy students surround Dunn after he received the APA’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Looking back, Dunn estimated he’s taught approximately 3,000 students. Their education and impact is what has mattered most to him, he said.
“I guess the thing I’m most proud of is, hopefully, making a difference,” he said. “Having a positive impact on these students, and trying to tell them that not every day is going to be great, but just to keep pushing through and having a positive impact on people’s lives.”
Dunn has received multiple teaching awards over the course of his career. He has received Teacher of the Year awards from the college six times, and Outstanding Faculty awards three times. He received the UAMS-wide Chancellor’s Faculty Teaching Award in 2003 and its successor, the Chancellor’s Excellence in Teaching Award, in 2015. He has been honored by College of Pharmacy senior classes as convocation speaker seven times.
Dunn has served as faculty advisor for the college’s American Pharmacists Association (APhA) Academy of Student Pharmacists (ASP) chapter (2003-2017), which under his tutelage, along with that of previous faculty advisor Charles Born, was named National Chapter of the Year a record six times. Dunn was also named National APhA-ASP Chapter Advisor in 2010.
In 2024, the College of Pharmacy created the Eddie B. Dunn Joy of Pharmacy Scholarship, which honors his legacy of energy and enthusiasm for the college and the profession. The scholarship is still receiving donations. To donate, visit the UAMS Giving website.
Dunn continues to mentor others ahead of retirement, scheduled for Dec. 31. Lara Rains, Pharm.D., recently joined the College of Pharmacy faculty as an assistant professor of pharmacy practice and has been mentored by Dunn over the past year.
“He’s great to work with and the reason that I’m here,” said Rains, who studied under Dunn while obtaining her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2022. “He’s been a great resource for me to have — he knows everything. He’s been my professor, he’s been my co-worker, and it’s just not going to be the same when he’s not here every day. We’ll miss him.”
It’s that kind of camaraderie that Dunn said he’ll miss most when he retires.
“I think what I’ve really enjoyed the most is just the personal interactions with the students and faculty,” Dunn said. “The people up here are fantastic. We have great students, and we have great faculty. They’re just so willing to help. If you don’t know anything, someone knows it and they’re willing to help you and show you. It’s a lot of fun to be around them.”