THE PURDUE
PHARMACIST
&rl\
PURDUE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACAL SCIENCES
Vol. 64
Summer 1987
No. 3
^tmxz Calumn
elbert M. Knevel, Ph.D., Acting Dean
This issue of The Purdue Pharmacist is
highlighting many of our alumni, student
and faculty who are receiving honors: Distinguished Alumni, The Glen J. Sperandio
Awardee, an Honorary Doctorate, and
recognition of outstanding achievements by
our faculty and students. All of this makes
me proud of the role I have played in this
past year as the Acting Dean of the School.
As Dean, it has been my privilege to work
closely with the Associate Dean for Professional Programs, with the students, with
the faculty, and with the alumni. To work
with the quality of students I see in my
classroom is both enriching and gratifying.
One can only see a strengthening and a
growth in the profession of pharmacy from
such quality. To work with the Associate
Dean and faculty who are eager to maintain quality in our undergraduate and
graduate curricula, and who work diligently in their research efforts is inspiring. And
to work with our alumni who are practicing in the many facets of the profession of
pharmacy is often very enlightening. Taking these as a whole it is evident that we
are striving for that "common cause of
working toward the betterment of society." Should we sometimes wonder "does
what I do count?" these reflections provide the answer — very much so.
The Earning of an Honory Doctorate Degree
Probably one of the greatest tributes we
can offer to one of our alumni is to present to him or her an honorary doctorate
from the University. We are pleased that
the Board of Trustees of Purdue University has approved an honorary degree for
Mr. Don M. Newman, who received his
B.S. degree in 1947 from Purdue University School of Pharmacy and Pharmacal
Sciences. Mr. Newman is presently serving as Under Secretary of the United States
Department of Health and Human Services
in Washington, D.C.
On "earning" an honorary degree one
must have accomplished not only personal
success, but to have contributed much to
the profession in which the honorary degree is conferred. Mr. Newman has done
just that. Space will not permit a full
recording of his accomplishments and contributions, but we would like to name a few
that will indicate his dedication to his
fession.
From the time of his graduation in 1947
until 1973 Mr. Newman was owner and
operator of Newman's Pharmacy in Mishawaka, Indiana, and Jefferson Medical
Arts Pharmacy, in South Bend, Indiana.
With his eye on a larger world he obtained
his M.B.A. from Indiana University in
1972, and went on to obtain his Doctor of
Jurisprudence from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. in 1979.
Between times, however, he was not just
a student, but was already appointed by
Governor Otis Bowen in 1973 to be Director of Indiana's Washington Office, a task
that entailed lobbying, policy-making, and
coalition-building on behalf of Indiana.
This was no doubt a very important and
time-consuming task, but more so when
one considers he was attending law school.
His talents were soon realized and Governor Orr reappointed him to the position in
1981.
By 1985 he had risen to the post of Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Health
and Human Services, and by 1986 was
sworn in as Under Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. In
this position he serves as chief executive
officer of his agency which employs over
120,000 individuals and has a budget of
approximately $360 billion. In this capacity, together with Dr. Otis Bowen, the
Secretary of the Department of Health and
Human Services, they serve as the principal health and welfare advisors to President Reagan.
In this report we have jumped rapidly from
his first position as Pharmacist/Owner to
one of the top advisors in the country. Mr.
Newman has, however, experienced the
role of the practitioner at most levels in between. You can count more than 18 organizations he was affiliated with in his career, in 13 of which he held the office of
President or Member of the Board. That
means involvement! Involvement means
changing things, which he did. These initiatives did not go unnoticed, for he was
awarded both the Bowl of Hygeia as well
as the Hubert H. Humphrey Award.
He not only served the profession well, but
his community and his country. He was a
willing volunteer in his community, and
served his country as a B-17 Bomber Pilot Instructor in World War II.
The profession is better for his having become involved. We are proud to have him
as an alumnus of our School, and pleased
that the University is awarding him this
honorary degree.