College of Pharmacy dean elected to chair NIPTE board of directors

Indra Reddy, PhD, professor and founding dean of the Texas A&M University Irma Lerma Rangel College of Pharmacy, has been elected to serve a three-year term as chair of the board for the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology & Education (NIPTE).

The mission of NIPTE is to improve the way medicines are designed and manufactured to meet the needs of patients in the 21^st century. In strategic collaborations with academia, industry and other stakeholders through research, outreach and education, NIPTE leverages scientific and technological advances to bring confidence and reliability for pharmaceutical products to consumers worldwide while helping solve many of today’s leading pharmaceutical challenges.

“The NIPTE scientific community can play an important role in solving problems through innovative research, utilization of prior and creation of new knowledge, and transformational education of the next generations of pharmaceutical scientists and engineers. In my role as the chair of the NIPTE board, I look forward to working with my colleagues on the board and NIPTE staff in advancing the mission and goal of the Institute,” Reddy said.

As chair of the board, Reddy will be responsible for coordinating and overseeing all board activities, presiding and managing board meetings, representing the institute in all appropriate activities at the national and international level pertaining to improving quality of pharmaceutical manufacturing, and facilitating advocacy opportunities for the Institute.

He will also ensure that funds are sought from federal agencies, that those funds are efficiently utilized, and that Texas A&M is well represented along with the other esteemed peer institutions. The institute includes membership of pharmacy and engineering programs in critical path areas, and Reddy will work to ensure a good dialogue and sound integration of manufacturing activities between pharmacy and engineering programs.

“What an outstanding honor this is for Dean Reddy and Texas A&M Health,” said Jon Mogford, PhD, chief operating officer and senior vice president of the Texas A&M University Health Science Center (Texas A&M Health). “Institutions like NIPTE underscore the importance of cross-collaboration designed to impact and influence innovation, which is at the very core of what we do here at Texas A&M, and I’m confident that Dean Reddy’s work will have a lasting impact on academic pharmacy for generations to come.”

For more than 10 years, NIPTE has collaborated with industry, academia and government to identify and solve the world’s pharmaceutical challenges. Current membership includes 18 U.S. Universities with the highest-ranking pharmaceutical education and research programs.

“Dean Reddy has been an active member of the board from the moment Texas A&M joined the organization,” said Vadim J. Gurvich, PhD, executive director of NIPTE. “Having served as the Vice Chair of the Board for three years, he is very well-positioned to lead it during these transformational times. Several Texas A&M faculty members have made valuable contributions to NIPTE and its scientific projects, and they have taken leadership positions in the NIPTE faculty committee.”

“I feel honored and humbled by the trust and confidence my colleague board members have placed in me. I am excited for the opportunity to lead such as pristine Institute, and I am deeply committed to advance its mission and goals,” Reddy said.