Decade by decade look at AACP's history

American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education,  Fall 1999  

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The American Conference of Pharmaceutical Faculties

Founding and Early Years 1900-1910

Pharmaceutical education at the turn of the century needed a professional organization. There were at least seven types of degrees offered in more than 80 pharmacy schools across the nation, yet only one out of every six pharmacists had pursued any formal education.

Early attempts to organize pharmacy schools had failed. So when Henry P. Hynson of the Maryland College of Pharmacy issued a call to form an association for pharmacy educators, many were skeptical. The educators, however, founded the American Conference of Pharmaceutical Faculties in May 1900, and quickly began its work.

During this decade, Conference leaders focused on degree uniformity, prerequisite legislation, increasing membership, and keeping the organization afloat. The Conference helped launch the National Syllabus Committee, which set early standards for the pharmaceutical curriculum through The Pharmaceutical Syllabus.

The 21 Founding Schools

* Atlanta College of Pharmacy, Atlanta

* Brooklyn College of Pharmacy, Brooklyn

* College of Physicians and Surgeons, Department of Pharmacy, San Francisco * Highland Park College of Pharmacy, Des Moines

* University of Kansas, Department of Pharmacy, Lawrence

* Louisville College of Pharmacy, Louisville

* Maryland College of Pharmacy, Baltimore

* Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, Boston

* Medico-Chirurgical College Department of Pharmacy, Philadelphia * National College of Pharmacy, Washington, D.C.

* College of Pharmacy of the City of New York, New York

* Northwestern University Department of Pharmacy, Chicago

* Ohio State University Department of Pharmacy, Columbus

* Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, Philadelphia

* Scia College Department of Pharmacy, Scio, Ohio

* St. Louis College of Pharmacy, St. Louis

* Union University Department of Pharmacy, Albany, New York

* University of Michigan Department of Pharmacy, Ann Arbor

* Vanderbilt University Department of Pharmacy, Nashville

* Western University of Pennsylvania Department of Pharmacy, Pittsburgh

* University of Wisconsin Department of Pharmacy, Madison

Founding Leaders

Henry P. Hynson of the Maryland College of Pharmacy invited all colleges of pharmacy to send three delegates to the 4900 APhA Annual Meeting to "take part in the formation of an Association of Teaching Schools of Pharmacy." Hynson served as President protem during this meeting, and later as president (1908-190%

Michigan's Albert B. Prescott, left, was the Conference's first president. Philadelphia's Joseph P. Remington, right, was its first vice president.

James H. Beal

Scio College of Pharmacy

Executive Committee

William Sim

Maryland College of Pharmacy

Executive Committee

Edward Kremer,s

University of Wisconsin

Executive Committee

James M. Good

St. Louis College of Pharmac

Executive Committee

George C. Diekman

College of Pharmacy of the City of New York Executive committee

Wymond H. Bradbury

National College of Pharmacy

Secretary/Treasurer

The Site of the Conference Founding

The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond, Virginia was the site of the founding of the American Conference of Pharmaceutical Faculties on May 8, 1900.

Degree Uniformity and Prerequisite Legislation Create the Need for a Standardized Curriculum

The many different degrees offered in the early years of the 20th century-ranging in length from three months to five years-prompted the need for uniformity. Prerequisite legislation became an issue in 1904 when a New York State law required graduation from an approved pharmacy curriculum as a "prerequisite" to pharmacist licensure. As other states began to adopt similar legislation, it became apparent that the issue was taking on a national character and that a standardized curriculum was needed.

The Pharmaceutical Syllabus

The Conference, APhA, and the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy addressed the issues of degree uniformity and prerequisite legislation by forming the National Syllabus Committee in 1906. The Committee quickly developed a two-year, 1,000-hour minimum course of study. The Committee's findings were published in 1910 as The Pharmaceutical Syllabus. Subsequent editions of The Syllabus addressed graduate education, board examinations, and eventually outlined a four-year curriculum in 1932. The publication fell out of favor in the 1940s when educators began to feel confined by its restrictive standards.

The American Conference of Pharmaceutical Faculties

The Search for Recognition 1910-1920

The decade of 1910-1920 was dominated by several professional setbacks.

In a 1915 address, Abraham Flexner, a medical education reformer, posed the question, "is pharmacy a profession?" His response: "The physician thinks, decides, and orders; the pharmacist obeys,--obeys, of course, with discretion, intelligence, and skill-yet in the end obeys and does not originate."

World War I brought more disappointment. The U.S. Army and Navy contended that they did not need pharmacists to prepare medicines. Instead, they briefly trained enlisted personnel to fill prescriptions and dispense the simple medications required.