Deans of the College

Eric L. Barker is the Jeannie and Jim Chaney Dean of Pharmacy and a professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Purdue University. Prior to his appointment as dean, he held the appointment of Associate Dean for Research in Purdue’s College of Pharmacy from 2010-2017. He joined the Purdue faculty in 1998. He received his B.S. in pharmacy at St. Louis College of Pharmacy and Ph.D. in pharmacology from Vanderbilt University and completed postdoctoral research at Vanderbilt and Emory universities. Dr. Barker is a noted neuropharmacologist, award-winning teacher, skilled academic leader, and pharmacist. He is a member of several professional associations that include the American Pharmacists Association, Society for Neuroscience, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, and American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, where he has served in leadership positions for the Neuropharmacology Division. From 2016 to 2021, he served as editor-in-chief for Pharmacological Reviews, a quarterly peer-reviewed scientific journal. Dr. Barker’s research interests are in the area of molecular actions of drugs of abuse and other drugs that affect the brain. He has received grant support from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institute of Mental Health, National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, Lilly Research Laboratories, and DARPA. In addition to his scholarly pursuits, he has been recognized for his efforts in teaching medicinal chemistry and pharmacology, having received the Purdue College of Pharmacy Dr. Aziz Outstanding Teaching Award as well as the Purdue University Charles B. Murphy Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award and selection to the Purdue Teaching Academy and the Purdue Book of Great Teachers. Dr. Barker was the recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award from the St. Louis College of Pharmacy in 2018.

Patricia L. Darbishire, PharmD is a clinical professor of pharmacy practice and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs for the College of Pharmacy at Purdue University. She earned an associate’s degree in journalism and a B.S. in biology with a minor in chemistry from Illinois State University, and her PharmD from Purdue University. She has extensive community pharmacy and disease state management experience, including certification training in immunizations, Medicare and disability, first responder, diabetes and pharmaceutical care. Her research and practice include establishment of community-based partnerships, service-learning, interdisciplinary initiatives, medication safety and adherence in community pharmacy practice, and substance use disorder and treatments. In addition to her selection as a fellow in the Big Ten Academic Alliance Leadership Program, she was recognized with a Purdue Teaching for Tomorrow Faculty Fellowship Award, served as Chair of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Experiential Education section, and completed two terms on the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education editorial board. She is the former Editor-in-Chief of the Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement, and a long-term faculty fellow and mentor with the Purdue Center for Instructional Excellence and the Community of Service Learning Faculty Fellows.

Steve Myszak, M.A., M.Ed. serves as the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs at the Purdue University College of Pharmacy. Steve earned his B.S. in Biology from Saint Joseph’s College, his Master of Arts in Student Personnel Administration from Ball State University, and his Master of Education from North Carolina State University. He possesses over 25 years of college administration experience at liberal arts institutions, regional R2 institutions, and national R1 institutions. His background includes undergraduate and professional student academic advising and student services, professional program admissions, scholarship administration, housing and residence life administration, orientation development and implementation, and career services experiences. Steve advocates for student learning and development while maintaining academic program integrity.

Kimberly S. Illingworth, PhD, FAPhA is a professor of pharmacy practice, as well as the Assistant Dean for Learning and Assessment at the Purdue University College of Pharmacy. Dr. Illingworth obtained her B.S. in pharmacy from Butler University and her Ph.D. in pharmacy administration from Purdue University. Her teaching and research interests predominantly focus on patient care, including patient behavior change, motivational interviewing, and health literacy, as well as the evaluation of the instructional methods to teach these topics to students. She established and directs the Purdue University Academic and Ambulatory Care Fellowship program. She served as Chair of the Economic, Social, and Administrative Sciences section of the American Pharmacists Association and the American Association Colleges of Pharmacy Social and Administrative Sciences section. She currently serves as Chair of the Teaching Academy Executive Council at Purdue. Her honors include being named in the Purdue University Book of Great Teachers and as a Purdue University Teaching Academy Fellow. In addition, she received an honorable mention for two Innovations in Teaching portfolios from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, the Dr. Aziz Award for Outstanding Teaching at the Purdue University College of Pharmacy, and the Purdue University Charles B. Murphy Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching.

Brian Shepler, PharmD is the Associate Dean for Engagement and Partnerships, and a clinical professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. In these roles, he oversees the Experiential Learning Program and teaches chronic kidney disease, acute kidney injury, and renal replacement therapies to second year PharmD students. Dr. Shepler earned his B.S. in Pharmaceutical Sciences and PharmD from Purdue University. He worked as a hospital pharmacist after graduation before returning to Purdue in 2000. Dr. Shepler is the faculty advisor for the Purdue chapter of the Industry Pharmacists Organization (IPhO). He has developed several Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) track programs that allow students to specialize their rotation schedules into hospital, ambulatory, community, and industrial pharmacy practice.

Val J. Watts is Associate Dean for Research in the College of Pharmacy and Professor of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology at Purdue University. Prior to his reappointment as associate dean for research, he held the appointment of associate and interim head of the Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology department. Dr. Watts joined the Purdue faculty in 1998. He received his BS in pharmacy at Ohio Northern University College of Pharmacy, a PhD in pharmacology from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and completed postdoctoral research at Oregon Health and Sciences University. Dr. Watts is a recognized molecular neuropharmacologist with research interests in the discipline of drug discovery in areas such as chronic pain, drug abuse, and other psychiatric and neurological disorders.

Danzhou Yang is a Distinguished Professor of Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology and the Martha and Fred Borch Endowed Chair in Cancer Therapeutics at Purdue University. She is the Associate Dean for Graduate Programs for the Purdue University College of Pharmacy. She received her Ph.D. in Biophysics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and B.S. in Molecular Biology from the University of Science and Technology of China. Prior to joining the Purdue faculty, Dr. Yang was a professor at the University of Arizona until 2016. Her research focuses on the structures and functions of biologically relevant DNA G-quadruplexes formed in the human oncogene promoters and human telomeres and their interactions with small molecules and proteins, as well as structure-based rational design of anti-cancer drugs.