FACULTY

Dedicated Educators, Dynamic Researchers

Assistant professor Katharina Quinlan works with students Clarissa Muller, Alyssa Garrett, Emily Reedich, Landon Genry and Sabrina Melki in her lab in Beaupre.

Katharina Quinlan Is One Of Several Professors Offering Students The Chance To Make Real Impacts

“I ask students, ‘How are you going to change the world’” While changing the entire world may be an ambitious goal, making positive change in health and health care is something students in the URI College of Pharmacy have every opportunity to do, with the bevy of scientists, professors, and pharmaceutical researchers they can work with, including Assistant Professor Katharina Quinlan.

In both the classroom and the lab, Quinlan challenges her students to make positive change. Affiliated with the George & Anne Ryan Institute for Neuroscience, Quinlan teaches courses in neuropharmacology, as well as the College’s Pharm.D. program. She also teaches a Grand Challenge Course, an interdisciplinary program that encourages students to come up with real-world solutions to common problems, in this case, associated with the brain.

“It aims to teach students about a certain topic, and also make them better citizens, make them think about something from multiple asp ects,” Quinlan said. “We have them do debates, for example, is it ethical for the NFL to send players out onto the field with the likelihood of getting head injuries. Students finish the semester with a term paper that must propose a viable solution, grounded in reality. I think this is a great idea for teaching in general.” In the lab, the main crux of Quinlan’s research looks at neurodegeneration and/or injury and the effect on neural circuits, most of which are in the spinal cord and have a lot to do with movement. One specific study looks at one’s susceptibility to Alzheimer’s and dementia after having experiences a prenatal brain injury, and whether a healthy diet and lifestyle throughout their lives can limit that susceptibility. Undergrad students have the opportunity to make an impact on such work. Currently, six undergrads and a graduate student work with Quinlan on her fascinating projects. Some even get the chance to be co-authors on published studies. The level of participation depends on the student and how committed they are. One has even secured a paid position in the lab. “She is amazing; she wants to learn everything,” Quinlan said. “She is willing to say, ‘I really want to see this; can I look over your shoulder?’ That kind of student is really the best because if someone is continually asking, ‘Can I do more, can I see more,’ you know they’re engaged and committed. Every one of the papers I’ve submitted since I’ve gotten to URI has had an undergrad as a co-author because of their significant contributions to the work.”

“It aims to teach students about a certain topic, and also make them better citizens, make them think about something from multiple aspects,”

“I continue to enjoy my role as a pharmacist on the COVID Advisory subcommittee and use my platform to advocate for the safe use of vaccines.”

Faculty Spotlight

PHP Chair Kerry LaPlante

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, URI College of Pharmacy personnel have been front and center, leading testing and vaccination clinics, developing new tests and treatments, and advising the community in television, radio, and online appearances. Perhaps no faculty member has been more of a face for the College than Professor Kerry LaPlante. The chair of the College’s pharmacy practice department has joined several other professors in making dozens of public appearances, locally and nationally, to keep the public informed of the latest on the pandemic. In addition to her teaching and leadership role in the College, LaPlante advises the state Department of Health as chair of its Antimicrobial Subgroup, and serves as director of her independently funded Rhode Island Infectious Diseases Antibiotic Research program at the Providence VA Medical Center. Even throughout the pandemic, she has maintained her important research into the treatment, outcomes, prevention, virulence inhibition, and decolonization of multiple drug resistant bacteria, specifically Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). LaPlante is an internationally recognized expert on antimicrobial pharmacology with more than 17 years of research in optimizing antibiotic use to prevent antimicrobial resistance, and studying the impact that antimicrobial prescribing has on the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance. Her research has received continuous funding from the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and research and development divisions of pharmaceutical industry. “I can tell you I’m sick of COVID and ready to focus primarily on antimicrobial resistance,” LaPlante said. “I continue to enjoy my role as a pharmacist on the COVID advisory subcommittee and use my platform to advocate for the safe use of vaccines, continue reviewing all the clinical trial data, stay abreast of the latest communications regarding the vaccine safety and efficacy, really stay focused on monitoring and understanding these variants.”

Katherine Orr Named Associate Dean

Clinical Professor Kelly Orr has been named associate dean of the URI College of Pharmacy, replacing the retired Norma Owens, who now serves the College as professor emeritus. Orr’s teaching, scholarship, and practice interests are in nonprescription medications, asthma management, and smoking cessation. She is involved in immunization instruction and precepts P4 students on community rotations. She is advisor to the College of Pharmacy Student Leadership Council (SLC) and the local chapter of the National Community Pharmacists Association. Orr currently serves as a member of the Nonprescription Medicines Academy (NMA) Steering Committee and was the 2011– 2012 chair of the AACP Self-Care Therapeutics/Nonprescription Medicines Special Interest Group. Along with national pharmacy organizations, locally Orr is an active member and past president of the Rhode Island Pharmacists’ Association, as well as a member of the R.I. Board of Pharmacy.

Even while students were learning remotely for much of the past year, pharmacy faculty members made sure they remained connected to the College, posing for Rhody Pride photos and encouraging students to send in their own photos wearing the Rhody blue and white.