The inaugural all-college meeting for Belmont University’s newly formed College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences was held on Tuesday, Aug. 8. The gathering was designed to foster collaboration and shared vision among diverse academic disciplines.
More than 100 faculty and staff members assembled to hear from speakers from across the university including Belmont Provost Dr. David Gregory, Associate Dean of Student Well-Being Dr. Angie Bryant and Vice-Provost for Research and Strategic Initiatives Dr. Erich Baker.
“It was imperative to bring together all 126 faculty and staff from the seven different professions together for a kick-off event,” said Dr. Sharrel Pinto, Dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. “We took time to get to know each other, celebrate our successes. learn about areas we need to monitor, identify opportunities for collaboration and growth and most importantly, come together as a community dedicated to improving the health of our patients and our communities.”
During her welcome message, Dean Pinto shared her personal and professional journey and noted how blessed she felt to be part of the Belmont community. She acknowledged that change of any kind can be hard but working toward a common goal tied to patient care binds everyone in the college. She ended her message with a call to action and inspired the college to “Be YOU-Be the BEST version of yourself that God has blessed you to be.”
Faculty participated in team building activities led by Human Resources and discussed strategies for collaboration among departments and programs. Team members from various fields including pharmacy, exercise science, public health and social work exchanged ideas, highlighting the interdisciplinary nature of the college's approach to health sciences.
Dr. Allison Koch, MSOT Program Director/Assistant Professor, spoke of her experiences following this event saying, “I have talked to multiple individuals who felt like it was a productive and fun time to get to know one another and to get excited about the year to come! The space that was created for interaction was needed. I heard people discussing new research initiatives, collaborative projects and arranging guest speakers for classes!”
Plans for innovative research projects, cross-disciplinary curriculum development and larger college initiatives solidified the institution's commitment to excellence in education, healthcare research and student engagement.