University of Texas at Austin Wins 2024 Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition

COLUMBUS, Ohio (Oct. 27, 2024) - A team of student pharmacists from the University of Texas at Austin was named the winner of the 21st annual Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition. A team from the University of South Carolina was the runner-up, and a team representing the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill finished as the second runner-up. The winners were announced as part of the National Community Pharmacists Association's Annual Convention, being held Oct. 26-29 in Columbus, Ohio.

"Congratulations to University of Texas at Austin for winning this year's competition, and to all of this year's finalists and participants for their hard work," said NCPA President Lea Wolsoncroft. "As we've seen in recent years, owning a business means rolling with the punches, whether that's confronting a global pandemic, industry pressures, staffing challenges, or any other obstacle. Having a solid business plan in place helps you stay focused on caring for patients and ensuring the pharmacy is heading in the right direction, regardless of turmoil around you. There were many great plans this year, but the University of Texas at Austin's efforts and presentation secured the win!"

The business plan competition is the first national competition of its kind in the pharmacy profession. The contest is named in honor of two great champions of independent community pharmacy, the late Neil Pruitt, Sr. and the late H. Joseph Schutte. Its goal is to motivate student pharmacists to create a business model for buying an existing independent community pharmacy or developing a new one. Through this competition, NCPA is helping to prepare tomorrow's pharmacy entrepreneurs. The competition is supported by Good Neighbor Pharmacy, Pharmacists Mutual Insurance Company, and the NCPA Foundation.

The three finalist teams presented their business plans in a live competition on Oct. 26, 2024, at the NCPA Annual Convention in Columbus. The judges for this year's live competition were Schwanda Flowers, Shana Herke, Scott Pace, Andy Pope, Theresa Tolle, and Gabe Trahan.

"The NCPA Foundation helps cultivate the next generation of independent community pharmacy owners and the Good Neighbor Pharmacy NCPA Pruitt-Schutte Student Business Plan Competition is our crown jewel in those efforts," said Jerry Shapiro, PharmD, president of the NCPA Foundation. "Many past participants in the competition have gone into ownership and point to this experience as being an important steppingstone in achieving that goal."

The winning team from the University of Texas at Austin is comprised of team captain Quinn Mosgrove and team members William Elizondo, Jennifer Lines, and Bruno Onwukwe. The team adviser is Terry Weaver, and the dean is Samuel Poloyac. Their chapter received $3,000, and an additional $3,000 was contributed to the school in the dean's name to promote independent community pharmacy at the college of pharmacy. The team members, team advisers, and dean will also receive complimentary registration, travel, and lodging to NCPA's 2025 Multiple Locations Conference this February in Florida.

The runner-up, the University of South Carolina, is comprised of team captain Jacob King and team members Farehaa Hussain and CharLeigh Steverson. The team advisers are Jordan Ballou and Patti Fabel and the dean is Stephen J. Cutler. Their chapter received $2,000, and an additional $2,000 was contributed to the school in the dean's name to promote independent community pharmacy at the college of pharmacy.

The second runner-up, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is comprised of team captain Gautham Ventakesh and team members Excellanxt Greer, Ethan Hatfield, and Trace Pigg. The team adviser is Gregory Vassie, and the dean is Angela Kashuba. Their chapter received $1,000, and an additional $1,000 was contributed to the school in the dean's name to promote independent community pharmacy at the college of pharmacy.

The teams rounding out the top 10, listed alphabetically, are Mercer University; Northeastern University; Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey; the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences; the University of California, San Francisco; the University of Georgia; and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

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Founded in 1898, the National Community Pharmacists Association is the voice for the community pharmacist, representing over 18,900 pharmacies that employ more than 205,000 individuals nationwide. Community pharmacies are rooted in the communities where they are located and are among America's most accessible health care providers. To learn more, visit www.ncpa.org.