The position involves administration of the UAMS Library, Media Services, Academic Computing, Academic Services, Student Financial Aid, the Office of Research Administration, the Office of Research Compliance, the Human Research Advisory Committee, student life, and the Arkansas Center for Prevention of Child Abuse and Domestic Violence.

Dean Ronald H. Winters, Ph.D., of the UAMS College of Health Related Professions at UAMS will chair a search committee to recruit a new dean of the College of Pharmacy.

Your neighborhood pharmacist probably knows him by name and reputation. Dr. Milne has made a powerful impression on an entire generation of students of pharmacy during his tenure of 25 years as dean of the College of Pharmacy. In that role, he became the senior dean among colleges of pharmacy in the nation. Today, more than 92 percent of the pharmacists practicing in the state are graduates of the college, and these alumni consider him and the faculty a main reason for their success in this field.

Jonathan Wolfe, Ph.D., a professor in the college and close associate of Dr. Milne, has served with him for many years.  “He’s a great organizer and problem-solver, so I’m confident he’ll do well. Dr. Milne's appointment as vice chancellor is a recognition of the fresh insight unique to an experienced teacher who has continued to learn," Dr. Wolfe said.

“As chief academic officer, he’ll maintain the overall institutional accreditation of UAMS with the North Central Association,” said colleague Linda C. Hodges, Ed.D., RN, dean of the UAMS College of Nursing. “I’ll miss him as a fellow dean of another college on the campus, but I’ll be working with him on other academic and institutional projects. 

Dr. Milne’s career path began as a pharmacy student at the University of Kansas followed by a Ph.D. in medicinal chemistry from the University of Iowa. As a faculty member, he was a researcher and teacher early in his career.  Later, while he was living and working in South Carolina, Gov. John West appointed Dr. Milne to a new Commission on Narcotics and Drug Abuse Prevention, so he shifted his career in a different direction. As a commissioner, he provided policy information to and worked with elected officials and their legislative aides.

“I learned the ‘art of the possible’ through that experience, and I’ve been an advocate of common sense ever since,” he said with a grin tempered by political reality. 

He became the second dean of the UAMS College of Pharmacy in December 1976 following the retirement of founding dean Stanley G. Mittelstaedt, Ph.D. During his term as dean, he led the faculty to adopt a doctoral degree (Pharm.D.) program for pharmacists instead of a Bachelor of Science degree, implemented a non-traditional doctoral degree (N.T.P.D.) degree for established pharmacists in the field, promoted the Poison Control Center within the college for service to health-care professionals and expanded it to include the public, and improved the program for continuing education for pharmacists. During the 2001-02 academic year, the college is celebrating its 50^th anniversary year.  “It’s a good time for a change,” he said with a smile.  

"When I came to UAMS in 1976, the state's motto was 'Arkansas: The Land of Opportunity.' That has certainly been true for me and the College of Pharmacy. We have increased our number of faculty from 14 to 55. Our Poison Control Center is now operating around the clock and serves the whole state. We have moved from offering a bachelor's degree to offering a doctor of pharmacy degree and we are a leader in nontraditional pharmacy education. We now have research funding approaching $2 million. But most importantly, the next dean of pharmacy will find many more opportunities here at UAMS," Dr. Milne said.

“Today, people see their pharmacist as a key member of the health-care team and the person able to explain to a customer how a drug works, how to take it appropriately, and how to avoid unwanted interactions from other medications – including over-the-counter drugs and herbal medicine,” Dr. Milne explained.

Dr. Milne has three children – Todd David, an insurance representative in Little Rock; Gannon Stuart, a representative of a wholesale pharmacy business; and Nicole Dawn and her husband, Larry Parker who is a Medical Technology Supervisor in the Clinical Laboratory at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.  He and his wife, Phyllis Milne, have two grandsons and a granddaughter on the way by Nicole.

According to Mrs. Milne, “Larry is always busy and involved by way of his dedication to UAMS. His accomplishments are many and he looks forward to this new challenge.  He remains devoted to our family and church, and he enjoys traveling, gardening, and our grandchildren.”  

To a high school student who may offer a complaint while asking the rhetorical question -- “What good is it to learn science?” -- Dr. Milne has a perfectly good answer: “So you can grow up and become a pharmacist, a research scientist, or a science teacher.”  In fact, that advice was given to him when he was a teenager. And that made all the difference for him – and for Arkansas.

Links on This Page

The UAMS College of Pharmacy: http://www.uams.edu/info/Updates/November01/cop.htm
Lindley: http://www.uams.edu/info/pdfs/retire.pdf
College of Pharmacy: http://www.uams.edu/cop

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