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July 23, 2025
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Ellen L. Woods, President
(571) 404-0471
woods@afpepharm.org
Recognizing excellence in mentorship, the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education has named the 2025
William M. Heller Mentor of the Year:
Mark Bounthavong, PharmD, PhD, MPH
Fairfax, VA – The William M. Heller Mentor of the Year Award honors faculty members nominated by students and colleagues for their exceptional mentorship, commitment, leadership, teaching, and support.
Mark Bounthavong, PharmD, PhD, MPH, is a professor of clinical pharmacy at University of California San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences; the national clinical program manager at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Pharmacy Benefits Management (PBM) Academic Detailing Services; and a health economist at the VA Health Economics Resource Center.
Mark values the importance of scientific inquiry, critical thinking and optimal decision making, particularly when there is limited evidence. To that end, he has made it his mission to teach the next generation of pharmacists to learn the skills to perform meaningful studies and develop the intuition to apply their findings to their practice and community.
Mark received his PharmD from College of Pharmacy, Western University of Health Sciences; MPH from the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University; and PhD from the Comparative Health Outcomes, Policy, and Economics (CHOICE) Institute, University of Washington. He has also completed a PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency at the Veterans Affairs Loma Linda Medical Center and a pharmacoeconomics and outcomes research fellowship at Western University of Health Sciences.
Upon being informed of the recognition, Mark shared: "It’s been an honor to share my knowledge and experiences with our pharmacy students and to help prepare them for the awesome responsibility that awaits. Our students and their motivation for pursuing a pharmacy career remind me each day why I enjoy being a part of UC San Diego. They are an inspiration for any mentor. It's only natural for a mentor to feel great joy in witnessing the achievements of their mentees. But the greatest reward is knowing that our students will carry on the mission and values of our profession."
About AFPE
AFPE supports the education of pharmaceutical scientists and strengthens pharmacy education at U.S. schools of pharmacy through scholarships and fellowships that provide recognition and financial support to outstanding pharmaceutical science graduate students, PharmD candidates, and pharmacy faculty researchers. AFPE uses annual tax-deductible contributions from corporations, foundations, associations, alumni, friends and former Fellows to support the robust pharmaceutical education scholarship and fellowship programs.
American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education
11325 Random Hills Road, Suite 360A-105 • Fairfax, VA 22030 • www.afpharm.org
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