Dr. Edgar Diaz-Cruz, Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Social and Administrative Sciences in the Belmont University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences was recently selected to join the Academic Leadership Fellows Program (AFLP) through the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP).
The AACP announced the selection of 35 individuals to join its prestigious Academic Leadership Fellows Program, a record number of accepted individuals since the program’s inception 20 years ago. Fellows were selected on their qualifications with an intentional eye on diversity aspects, including gender, race/ethnicity, type of academic institution, geography and discipline.
“Hispanic/Latino pharmacy educators are largely underrepresented in formal leadership roles in the academy,” said Diaz-Cruz. “It is my personal and professional goal to develop an institutional academic approach anchored in inclusive policies. The welcoming culture this engenders creates cultures of belonging and mattering, which are essential to increase diverse representation in key roles. My participation in ALFP is one step towards attaining this goal.”
ALFP aims to support and contribute to the development of leaders in academic pharmacy and higher education. It utilizes an in-depth curriculum aimed at the development of self through the study of leadership theory, personal skills enhancement and guidance from demonstrated leaders. Critical topics addressing how to lead change, conflict management, diversity, equity and inclusion in leadership development, and leadership styles and theory will be covered during the four sessions.
“Through their diverse career paths, more than 500 ALFP alumni are making a difference in academic pharmacy, higher education and the pharmacy profession,” said Lee Vermeulen, B.S. Pharm., M.S., FCCP, FFIP, AACP Executive Vice President and CEO. “The 2023 cohort marks the 20th anniversary of this prestigious program and I look forward to seeing the continued transformation of pharmacy education and practice in the next 20 years.”
Upon completion of the program in 2024, AFLP Fellows will join more than 500 program alumni, many of whom have assumed leadership positions in academic pharmacy, higher education and other healthcare fields.
Dr. Diaz-Cruz has spent most of his professional career working on interdisciplinary teams and collaborative research projects. A graduate of the University of Puerto Rico and The Ohio State University, he completed a post-doctoral fellowship in tumor biology at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
His scientific findings have been published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at national and international meetings. Dr. Diaz-Cruz has also served as a peer-reviewer for scientific journals, an academic and career development mentor and a researcher for translational breast cancer research consortiums.