University of New England

UNE's College of Pharmacy granted approval by Maine State Board of Education

PORTLAND - The University of New England's new College of Pharmacy was  granted unconditional approval by the Maine State Board of Education on Sept. 12, 2007.

With 53 prepharmacy students having already begun the fall semester on UNE's Biddeford campus and the four-year Pharm.D. graduate program due to begin on the Westbrook College Campus in Portland in the fall of 2009, the College is well under way.

Plans are also being made for construction of additional classroom space on the campus in Portland to begin no later than March 2008. In addition, the College is moving forward in the accreditation process with final application materials due in May of 2008.

UNE President Danielle Ripich, Ph.D., said, "Since our announcement early last fall to found a College of Pharmacy, we are excited as we move ahead with our plans, and we look forward to working to meet this critical healthcare need for Maine and northern New England. We also plan to have research as a big part of our program and will build on our research in pain medications as well as medicines from the sea."

UNE's College of Pharmacy has received several grants, the most recent being a $1 million lead grant from Hannaford Bros. Co. toward the construction of a clinical practice laboratory for the new college.

In addition to that grant, Hannaford has provided the College with a "loaned" executive from Scarborough to assist in the College's development. Mark Polli, a registered pharmacist who has worked at Hannaford for more than 30 years,  joined the College of Pharmacy on  Sept. 11, 2007 as director of Pharmacy Experiential Programs. While in this position, Polli will remain an associate of Hannaford, but will be located on UNE's Westbrook College Campus in Portland.

"A significant portion of our Pharm. D. curriculum will be devoted to experiential training in various pharmacy practice sites around Maine," said John Cormier, Pharm.D., dean of the College. "The director of Experiential Programs is one of the most critical positions for the College."

In this new position, Polli will travel throughout the state of Maine  to gather information about potential experiential training sites, including the nature of the practice site (drugstore, supermarket pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, etc.), the site's capacity to accommodate students, and the specific types of services the students will be exposed to at each site.

Mark Polli
Mark Polli has worked at Hannaford Bros. Co. since 1974, first joining the company as a staff pharmacist. He currently serves as director of pharmacy professional service, a position he has held since 2000. Polli serves on Maine's State Board of Pharmacy, having done so for 10 years; is also a member of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, serving on their Policy Council; and is a member of the Maine Pharmacists Association as well as the New Hampshire and Vermont chain drug associations. He earned his bachelor's degree in pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy in Boston.

(Press release posted Sept. 13, 2007)