DEAN DELIVERS PCP KEYNOTE ADDRESS Dr. Arcelia Johnson-Fannin delivered the keynote address for the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy White Coat Ceremony held on October 20, 2012 in Philadelphia, PA. Pictured here with her are Dr. Laura Mandos, Associate Dean of Student Affairs and Dr. Cathy Poon, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.
PENNIES FOR PURE WATER In the spring 2012 semester, Dr. Johnson-Fannin invited FSOP students, faculty and staff to participate in a community service project that would have both immediately tangible and far-reaching effects to improve many lives. The Dean serves on the board of a charitable organization named Small Beginnings Big Results (SBBR), which raises funds and builds water wells in villages in Ghana, Africa. She invited all of FSOP to donate their pennies regularly throughout the semester, and if the school could raise at least $1500, she would donate the rest of the cost for a well to be built in honor of the Feik School of Pharmacy.
Dedication plaque for FSOP well.
The student government officers and the Dean’s Student Council enthusiastically embraced the project, as did the presidents of each class. Faculty and staff were supportive as well. Cardboard collection wells were constructed and placed in each of the three classrooms. By semester’s end, the entire $2000 needed to construct a well had been donated, and was presented to Ms. Mattie Kinard, the founder of SBBR. Construction of the FSOP well was completed this summer, with a dedication ceremony held on August 31, 2012. The well was drilled in the village of Awuku Gua. The 2500 residents of this village had formerly depended on a muddy stream in a valley over a mile away from their homes for all of their water needs. As was evident at the dedication, the people were overjoyed and grateful to have a clean, safe source of water right in their village. This community service project will now be repeated every even-year spring at the Feik School of Pharmacy. For an average donation of just $5 per person, each individual’s pennies can collectively buy blessings to benefit many, and provide a legacy of continued giving for the foreseeable future.