Pharmacy Alumni Honored at Annual Reed Conference

Pharmacy Alumni Honored at Annual Reed Conference

Congratulations to the four outstanding Alumni announced at the 2025 Reed Conference as the inaugural class of School of Pharmacy Alumni Award winners. The awards honor exceptional Alumni for their contributions to the University’s values of innovation, leadership, and community impact.

Distinguished Alumni Award, Boston

Kathleen Gura, PharmD, BSNSP, FASHP, FPPAG, earned both her BS (1982) and PharmD (1991) degrees from MCPHS, and became one of the first board-certified nutrition support pharmacists in Boston. She has enjoyed a decades-long, award-winning career at Children’s Hospital Boston, where she serves as the Pharmacy Clinical Research Program Manager. Throughout her career, Dr. Gura has served as an Adjunct Clinical Preceptor and lecturer for many of the therapeutic and pharmacy practice courses at MCPHS. She has also served on and supported numerous School of Pharmacy (SOP) task forces and student organizations and is currently a member of the SOP-Boston, Dean’s Advisory Council. Among her many achievements is the discovery and ultimate clinical use of Omegaven, a nutritional lipid emulsion that is considered among the Top 10 advances in Children’s Hospital history. Thanks to her work, thousands of children each year benefit from this life-saving therapy.

“My professional life hasn't veered far from MCP's doorstep, but I have been fortunate enough to see the world because of it and hopefully made a difference,” said Gura, who fondly remembers the guidance of professors including Lynne Sylvia, Caroline Zeind, Rebecca Couris, and the late Robert Zaim.

Distinguished Alumni Award, Worcester/Manchester

Captain Anna Santoro, PharmD, MA, BCPP, NCPS, is an officer in the U.S. Public Health Service, currently serving as the Chief Pharmacist for the Federal Medical Center Devens and as a Regional Mental Health Consultant for the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FOB). A 2009 MCPHS graduate, she has given back to MCPHS as a frequent speaker at events and as a preceptor, and has been recognized as a Preceptor of the Year.

A leader in psychiatric pharmacy within the FOB, she established its first pharmacist-managed Psychiatric Clinic, contributed to its national expansion of pharmacy mental health services, and led the implementation of an opioid treatment program that expanded access to treatment for substance use disorder. As a pharmacy leader and advocate, she speaks at national conferences and has appeared in the New York Times.

Graduate of the Last Decade, Boston

Kama Thomas serves as the Health Outcomes and Research Coordinator for Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee, Wisc., and is the author of Nothing Wasted: A True Story of Immigration and Resilience in Pursuit of the American Dream. A 2015 MCPHS graduate, she supports her alma mater by mentoring students at national conferences, participating in Alumni and Friends Receptions, sharing her expertise through speaking engagements, and educating students about careers in pharmacy. That belief in giving back extends to her native St. Lucia, as well, where she returned in 2018 to establish scholarships for promising students. Each year she educates students at the School of Allied Health and Medicine at Newton College on a career in pharmacy and how that career can start at MCPHS.

A Board-Certified Ambulatory Care Pharmacist, her contributions to the profession include leading crucial research initiatives that focus on healthcare equity, patient outcomes measurement, and quality improvement, and service on numerous national committees and advisory groups.

Graduate of the Last Decade, Worcester/Manchester

Arash Eshragi, PharmD, began his career in patient advocacy, collaborating alongside oncologists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute to educate and empower patients in clinical trials. He worked to demystify the medical hurdles patients face and created a proprietary matching system that allowed prostate cancer patients to identify relevant studies to push the oncology paradigm forward.

Dr. Eshraghi currently serves as a Medical Science Liaison for Pfizer’s Medical Oncology group, where he contributes to work in melanoma, thoracic, and colorectal solid tumor franchises in the Northeast. Based in Boston, he has been an integral part of numerous medical initiatives, clinical trials, and community education in the realm of cancer care and research, which remains his passion. He also continues to contribute to the University through keynote speaking engagements, student mentorship work, and consistent collaborations at University events.

If you are interested in giving time as a guest speaker or student mentor, please email us at alumni@mcphs.edu.