New associate deans focus on global affairs and industry partnerships

Two new associate dean positions have been created in the UCSF School of Pharmacy to expand the School’s partnerships with industry and extend its work globally. This work now will be coordinated by Daniel Santi, MD, PhD, associate dean of external scientific affairs and Steven Kayser, PharmD, associate dean of global affairs. The appointments took effect January 1, 2009.

“We need these positions to help meet our strategic plan goals,” says Mary Anne Koda-Kimble, PharmD, dean of the School. “Dan and Steve were excellent candidates. Dan retired from the faculty in 2000, and Steve will retire from the faculty this summer. They both have the breadth of experience, the time, and the commitment needed to return and assume these and other responsibilities part time. The School is fortunate, indeed.”

Santi is charged with developing new research partnerships, primarily with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. “As we state in our strategic plan, we believe that the wellsprings for advances in drug discovery and development are to be found in the deepest reaches of academia. Dan will help us bring our academic science to the attention of industry. He knows industry well,” adds Koda-Kimble.

Santi has founded or co-founded 4 biotechnology companies. He has published more than 300 scientific papers and is co-inventor of more than 30 issued U.S. patents. In 1996, he co-founded Kosan Biosciences where he served as chief executive officer and chairman until 2006. He was a member of the UCSF School of Pharmacy faculty from 1974 until 2000. In 2009 he rejoined the School as an associate dean and also as a faculty member of the School’s department of pharmaceutical chemistry.

With his new appointment, Kayser oversees the School’s relationships with the international community and with people and programs at UCSF involved in international work, and he advises the School on opportunities that will extend its work globally. “Our School is seen internationally as a leader in academic pharmacy research and education. One of our goals is to share our expertise beyond the U.S. as we, in turn, learn from others internationally,” Koda-Kimble explains.

Kayser specializes in anticoagulation and cardiology. He currently teaches UCSF student pharmacists and will continue to teach post-retirement. Kayser cares for patients on the UCSF Medical Center’s cardiology service and in its intensive cardiac care unit. He is the long-time director of the School’s academic clinical pharmacy program with Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences. And, he is currently working with pharmacy colleagues in Vietnam to develop academic collaborations based on a partnership agreement with all Vietnamese pharmacy schools.

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School of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, Department of Clinical Pharmacy, PharmD Degree Program

About the School: The UCSF School of Pharmacy aims to solve the most pressing health care problems and strives to ensure that each patient receives the safest, most effective treatments. Our discoveries seed the development of novel therapies, and our researchers consistently lead the nation in NIH funding. The School’s doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) degree program, with its unique emphasis on scientific thinking, prepares students to be critical thinkers and leaders in their field.