Ellie Flynn is a third-year PharmD candidate at the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy and was the 2023–2024 Region 6 APhA–ASP Midyear Regional Meeting Coordinator.
Serving as the 2023–2024 Region 6 APhA–ASP Midyear Regional Meeting Coordinator. (MRMC) was an unforgettable experience. When I campaigned for the position during my second year of pharmacy school, I had not fully grasped the impact that this role would have on my life.
While the title may be centered around planning for the 2024 Midyear Regional Meeting (MRM), the eight MRMCs worked as a team and collaborated on projects far beyond MRM alone.
Preparing at JBM
I started my term in January 2024 by participating in the APhA–ASP January Business Meeting. This meeting was designed to orient us to our new roles and serve as a team-bonding experience for the family we would soon create among the regional officers. Immediately, we began preparing for our role at the 2024 APhA Annual Meeting & Exposition, where we would conduct the Regional Meet and Greet sessions and served on the APhA–ASP Reference Committee to include last minute student pharmacist feedback on proposed resolutions and submit the final proposals presented during the APhA–ASP House of Delegates.
We also had the opportunity to serve as a voting member of the “big” APhA House of Delegates! These are activities a lot of people do not associate with the MRMC role, but it really gives you an idea of the variety of programming you get to lead as a MRMC.
A busy summer
That led us into the summer, when we started gearing up for the APhA–ASP Summer Leadership Institute (SLI) and really diving into programming for MRM2024. At SLI, the regional officers served as table leaders to guide discussion and coordinated region dinner meetups. Our team specifically had the opportunity to design the first MRM Planning Guide to help chapters and student pharmacists navigate the onsite, on-campus, and online format of MRM2024.
Since I was also serving as the APhA Carl F. Emswiller summer intern at the time, I got to take the lead and delegate tasks to bring this tool to life. This was such a rewarding experience, and I was honored that the team trusted me with this as it was an idea we discussed at the very beginning of our term together.
The big moment arrives
The months leading up to MRM kept the team very busy, as we finalized programming and held multiple webinars to promote the event to student pharmacists across the nation. Then it came time for the big moment when we got to see all the team’s hard work play out during MRM2024.
During the weekend, we had various responsibilities, such as welcoming the onsite guests and speakers, responding to questions from the on-campus and online participants, and hosting information sessions about APhA–ASP programming during the Virtual Career Showcase. Although we were hard at work throughout the weekend, the meeting also served as a time for the regional officers to reconnect after many months of strictly virtual collaboration.
My favorite part of the weekend was hosting the closing session on Sunday. This is when chapters could present and debate the proposed policy resolutions; engage in region specific trivia; watch an empowering message from Michael D. Hogue, PharmD, FAPhA, FNAP, FFIP, executive vice president and CEO of APhA; celebrate the regional award winners; and elect the new team of regional officers. Having experienced this session as a chapter leader during MRM2023 made this experience extra special, as I knew the excitement that each of the chapters felt during this moment, and I was honored to facilitate that experience and help celebrate the successes of the chapters of Region 6.
Proud of my MRMC crew
I am incredibly proud of the work of our regional officer team. It was an honor to work alongside such an inspiring group of student pharmacists, and I hope our paths will cross again in the future. It was an absolute privilege to serve as the Region 6 MRMC, and I cannot wait to see the amazing things the new team will accomplish throughout the upcoming year.