Interim dean in familiar position

As interim dean of the College of Pharmacy for the coming months, Mustafa F. Lokhandwala said he hopes to obtain more quality faculty members, increase the college’s number of doctorates and nurture a higher level of research.

"The baby boomer generation is getting older, and new diseases are being diagnosed. Because of this, there is a greater need for pharmacists to provide the necessary treatments for these new diseases," Lokhandwala said.

The deanship of the college was left vacant after former College of Pharmacy Dean Sunny E. Ohia announced in June that he would assume the role of vice president of academic affairs and provost at Texas Southern University. Lokhandwala, a professor of pharmacology, was selected to fill the interim dean position until a new dean for the College of Pharmacy is chosen. His position takes effect Sept. 13.

Lokhandwala served as dean of the College of Pharmacy for 11 years from 1991 to 2002, and his roots at the University trace back even further. After receiving his Ph.D. from the University in 1975, Lokhandwala signed on as an assistant professor, became an associate professor in 1981 and eventually a full professor in 1989.

Because he’s familiar with the post, Lokhandwala said he knows what needs to happen for the college to be able to provide a more rigorous education to aspiring pharmacists. During his term, which could last anywhere from eight months to a year, Lokhandwala said he will focus on recruiting professors to further contribute to the amount of research in which the college partakes.

"My goal is to recruit more quality faculty and foster the growth of research being conducted. It’s important that the faculty is not only capable of exploring groundbreaking research but that they find a way to translate that knowledge back into the classroom," said Lokhandwala, who has secured more than $12 million in research funding during the past 25 years.

For Lokhandawala, increasing the number of students attending the college is as essential as securing a reputable teaching staff.

"I will be working with different departments to recruit more graduate students and students seeking a doctor of pharmacology," Lokhandwala said.

Lokhandwala serves as the executive vice dean for research at the College and is the director of the Heart and Kidney Institute at the College. He is also the editor in chief of the medical journal Clinical and Experimental Hypertension.