The University of Maryland School of Pharmacy (UMSOP) ranks among the top 10 pharmacy schools in the country in regard to funded research grants and contracts, according to new data from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP).

Fifty funded investigators helped the school place ninth with more than $25.8 million in research grants and contracts from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and other federal and non-federal sources. AACP’s ranking is based on data from Oct. 1, 2021, through Sept. 30, 2022.

UMSOP increased its research funding by more than $5 million between the 2021 and 2022 fiscal years. The school has shown year-over-year growth, with its number of funded faculty more than doubling and its total funding tripling in the last decade.

“The University of Maryland School of Pharmacy has outstanding faculty with creative and innovative ideas aimed at addressing basic biological questions, clinical problems, and pharmaceutical health services gaps,” said Paul Shapiro, PhD, associate dean for research and advanced graduate studies and professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences (PSC). “The school’s funding portfolio is quite diverse, coming from both federal and non-federal sources.”

Groundbreaking Research

Faculty from PSC and the Department of Practice, Sciences, and Health Outcomes Research (P-SHOR) have earned contracts and grants for their groundbreaking research projects spanning drug discovery, translational medicine, population outcomes, and many more topics.

• James Polli, PhD, the Ralph F. Shangraw/Noxell Endowed Chair in Industrial Pharmacy and Pharmaceutics, works closely with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on multiple projects. Polli co-directs the University of Maryland Center of Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (M-CERSI) to evaluate drug safety and efficacy. M-CERSI, which received $25 million over five years since 2018, was recently renewed for up to $50 million over another five years and is one of five such centers in the country. Polli is also co-director of the Center for Research on Complex Generics, a joint venture with the University of Michigan, that received a $5 million grant from the FDA in 2020 to increase access to safe and effective generic drugs through collaborative research, training, and exchange.
• Ryan M. Pearson, PhD, assistant professor of PSC, received a highly prestigious $1.9 million Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award (MIRA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences to develop new nanoparticles to treat inflammatory disorders.
• Angela Wilks, PhD, Isaac E. Emerson Chair of Pharmaceutical Sciences and interim co-chair of PSC, and Amanda Oglesby, PhD, associate professor of PSC, lead a $1.1 million grant from the NIH along with colleagues in the University of Maryland School of Medicine. The Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) program aims to increase underrepresented groups in biomedical doctoral programs.
• Bethany DiPaula, PharmD, BCPP, FASHP, professor of P-SHOR, is helping lead a $32 million contract with the Behavioral Health Administration over five years to provide comprehensive on-site pharmacy services for five facilities, coordinate the Clozapine Authorization and Monitoring Program, and the University of Maryland Psychiatric Pharmacy Residency Program.
• Susan dosReis, PhD, professor of P-SHOR and vice chair for research, received $5 million over five years to conduct a targeted safety study as a post-approval safety study commitment for the FDA that evaluates the safety of a vaccine in older adults.
• Megan Ehret, PharmD, MS, BCPP, professor of P-SHOR, leads both the Antipsychotic Review Program and Peer to Peer Programs with the Office of Pharmacy Services within the Maryland Department of Health with contract dollars totaling more than $13 million.
• Fadia Shaya, PhD, MPH, professor of P-SHOR and executive director of the Behavioral Health Resources Program (BHRT), and a University of Maryland, Baltimore Distinguished Professor, has received $4.2 million over the past five years from federal sources to work with the Maryland Department of Health to address policy and practice with respect to the proper use of prescription drugs and the prevention of substance misuse.

“Our dedicated faculty, researchers, and graduate students are committed to their pursuit of discoveries and innovation that will impact medicine, health care, and patient care,” said Sarah L.J. Michel, PhD, interim dean and professor of UMSOP. “A top 10 ranking of our research funding is a recognition of the pursuit of scientific excellence that exists at our school.”