In July, Marie Chisholm-Burns stepped down from her position as dean of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) to become provost of Oregon Health & Science University.
About seven months later, UTHSC has found her replacement.
After a national search, Reginald F. Frye, PharmD, Ph.D., has been named the dean of the UTHSC College of Pharmacy. He comes from the University of Florida (UF) College of Pharmacy, and he’ll begin his tenure at UTHSC on June 1.
“I’ve known some of the faculty there for a long time,” Frye said, in a press release. “The UTHSC College of Pharmacy has an outstanding reputation with many strengths in research, clinical practice, and pharmacy education, so it was a good fit for me. Dean Chisholm-Burns built an excellent foundation that we can build on.”
At the UF College of Pharmacy, Frye is a professor and chair of the Department of Pharmacotherapy and Translational Research, as well as the associate dean for faculty development. During his time at the school, he's launched a new graduate concentration in clinical pharmaceutical sciences, increased faculty numbers, promoted inclusive hiring, helped revise the PharmD curriculum, and encouraged growth of UF's research portfolio.
He joined UF in 2003, and before this, he worked at the University of Pittsburg, where he was both an assistant professor of pharmaceutical sciences and the director of the Clinical Pharmacology Analytical Facility.
Throughout his career, he’s had success as a researcher, and focused on factors influencing drug response tied to metabolism and pharmacogenetics. He’s received funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and from industry and foundations. Frye is the author — or co-author — of more than 130 research publications.
Research will continue to be a priority of his at UTHSC, as he wants the College of Pharmacy to become one of the top 10 recipients of NIH funding. Currently, it’s in the 12th spot. He plans to help it move up in ranking by supporting new and established researchers, and encouraging collaboration with both other UTHSC colleges and outside institutions. Its work with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, he believes, is a strength that he can build upon.
Frye also wants to focus on expanding the college’s outreach to rural populations in Tennessee, and its emphasis on reducing health disparities — with UTHSC’s Nashville and Knoxville campuses set to play a key role in these efforts.
“The Nashville and Knoxville campuses are extremely important,” he said. “This helps with the college’s ability to have a strong clinical impact on the health and wellness of Tennesseans across the state."
