Pharmacy Offers Avenues for Student Involvement

Of the dozen or so student organizations in the Wegmans School of Pharmacy, third-year student Hailey Button is involved in roughly half of them. An active member of several pharmacy fraternities, the School’s student government, and a group that raises funds for 13thirty Cancer Connect, she’s involved in service, leadership, and professional organizations on campus.

“While being involved in so many organizations can be incredibly time consuming, I have reaped so many benefits that if given the opportunity to do it over, I would gladly still be as involved as I currently am,” Button said. “I have made some of my best friendships out of these organizations and have learned how to be a more effective leader and how to deal with adversity.”

The School’s robust student life has blossomed since its inception in 2006. The Pharmacy Student Government Association was the School’s first student organization, and has served as a sounding board for administrators and faculty members.

“We aim to be student-centered, so PSGA is a way to ask students for feedback on their experiences, things we’re doing well or things we can improve upon,” said Dr. Dave McCaffrey, assistant dean for student affairs at the School.

Student organizations, now at a total of 13, are often affiliated with a professional association, creating a regional, state, or national network of working pharmacists for students. The fraternal organizations create avenues for leadership and praise academic accomplishments, while other student groups provide students with opportunities for community service, whether it’s running health clinics at local nonprofits or speaking to middle school students about careers in pharmacy.

“In the last five years, we’ve added four groups; and the growth was really borne out of student interest, which is very consistent with the College’s approach,” McCaffrey said. “If there is not an organization that serves you, and you find an interested group of students, we will work with you to make that group a reality.”

That’s what Button and her peers are starting to do with Bald for Bucks. The School joined the movement as a service project to raise funds for 13thirty Cancer Connect, a nonprofit that supports teens and young adults with cancer, and it has now become an annual event. In the last three years, the students, faculty, and staff participating in Bald for Bucks have raised $13,000, all of which stays in the Rochester community.

“Our hope is to turn this team into a true organization to help us gain more support from the School and to make sure this event continues on as the students who started it begin to graduate and move on,” Button said. “I plan and assist with many events throughout the school year, but this one is by far the most rewarding.”

For more information about student life at the Wegmans School of Pharmacy, visit the Pharmacy Student Center webpage.