Educational Affairs Council (EAC) Updates

November 2020

Following the success of our first Virtual Seminar and the cancellation of Fall Seminar due to the continued risks associated with COVID-19, the Educational Affairs Council turned their attention to our student members, and the most popular events each year: the Residency Showcase.  For the past several years, this event has taken place at Fall Seminar in the morning, while pharmacists and technicians are busy with professional development sessions.  With the transition to virtual events, EAC worked closely with our association management team to develop an online showcase which was held on the original date for Fall Seminar, Saturday, November 14th.

We were very pleased to host 41 students at the event and provide them opportunities to engage with many of our local residency programs.  Additionally, we added two live sessions which included a panel of past residents providing tips and answering questions about “A Day in the Life” of a resident, as well as a presentation on “Virtual Interviewing Pearls and Pitfalls” that was highly attended.

The EAC is grateful to each of the residency programs who registered and hosted a booth, and very excited that the event ran very smoothly and attendees seemed to find value in the opportunities to network with these programs.  While we optimistically look ahead to a return to in-person gatherings for Fall Seminar 2021, the feedback we received and lessons we’ve learned from “Virtual Residency Showcase 2020” give us great confidence in the ability of OSHP to respond to the needs of our diverse membership and create meaningful experiences in the year to come.

We look forward to additional offerings by the EAC and Annual Seminar Planning Committee in the future, and invite anyone interested in participating in the planning of these innovative events to contact [email protected] to get involved!

Stay safe and healthy, and have a Happy Holidays!
--Ryan and Megan, EAC Co-chairs

June 2020
Education in the time of COVID-19

The EAC is working in collaboration with the Annual Seminar Planning Committee and the Board of Directors to identify interesting and innovative ways to engage with our members in a safe and effective way during this pandemic.  While we will not be holding our traditional in-person fall and annual seminars this year, we will continue our mission of promoting professional development for pharmacists, technicians, and students in Oregon.  We look forward to the opportunity to bring your timely CE and social/networking opportunities in the coming months in the form of live webinars, on-demand CE, virtual “hang outs,” etc.  We are eager to hear about what works, what doesn’t work, and what is missing, so do not hesitate to provide feedback!

We recently awarded OSHP scholarships to an exceptional group of future pharmacists from OSU and Pacific University.  We had a strong pool of applicants this year, and from this group, we selected ten students who have an impressive track record of leadership, advocacy, and professional engagement.  We thank all the students who applied, and congratulations to the scholarship awardees.  They will be formally recognized at an upcoming online event, along with other award winners.

Additionally, we’d like to take a moment to thank Kylee Kastelic for years of service and leadership on EAC and wish her well as she steps away from the duties of co-chair, and also to welcome Megan Herink, the newly appointed EAC co-chair.  Thanks to all the members who have participated in Fall Seminar planning and the student scholarship program this past year.

Lastly, we would like to thank our supporting members and industry partners who continue to seek new ways to support our programming and engage with our membership despite the challenges of COVID-19.  We look forward to a productive year and the new opportunities and outlets to provide collaboration, community and continuing education. Stay tuned for more information about these events!

--Ryan and Megan, EAC Co-chairs