Rick Couldry selected as School of Pharmacy distinguished graduate
LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas School of Pharmacy has selected Rick Couldry, vice president of pharmacy and health professions at The University of Kansas Health System, for its 2025 Distinguished Graduate Award. The award annually recognizes an alumnus of the school’s graduate programs. Couldry earned his Master of Science in Hospital Pharmacy Administration from the KU School of Pharmacy in 1996 while completing a two-year residency in pharmacy practice and leadership at KU Medical Center.
Couldry will accept the award Jan. 15 when he gives the keynote presentation at the 40th Mossberg Honors Symposium. His keynote title is “Principled Leadership in Healthcare – A Lighthouse in a Storm of Change.” Couldry will share his thoughts on leadership in an ever-changing health care environment that he suggests must include humility, fostering a great work culture and maintaining services that produce high-quality health care.
“When I started my career, we only had to know hospital pharmacy,” said Couldry, who now oversees departments such as Pathology and Laboratory Science, Respiratory Therapy, Rehabilitation Services, Clinical Nutrition, Pulmonary Function, Sleep Center and Biomedical Engineering, which collectively employ about 1,900 staff members.
“As the Health System grew and the pharmacy market grew, we had to learn, and that has been both the challenge and a big part of the fun. I believe pharmacists are uniquely trained and positioned to be successful and contribute to health systems.”
“Rick Couldry exemplifies the excellence in practice and leadership that we strive to instill in all our students,” said Brittany Melton, interim chair and professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice. “His three decades of leadership have helped exponentially grow the pharmacy footprint at The University of Kansas Health System, and he has been a role model and advocate for countless pharmacy students. We’re pleased to recognize him for his outstanding contributions to the pharmacy profession, teaching and health care leadership at the highest levels.”
Couldry credits his KU education and many colleagues for helping him to succeed in his leadership journey. His studies included classes in the School of Business, the School of Medicine (Public Health) and the School of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmacy Practice.
While he’s responsible for a multimillion-dollar operation today, he’s perhaps most proud of his role as a mentor and his time directing pharmacy residency programs.
“I always enjoy helping people achieve or realize their potential,” Couldry said. “I still have five or six people I have coffee with every few weeks in a mentoring relationship. It's rewarding and fulfilling.”
Couldry grew up on a farm in northwest Missouri and received his Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. After his pharmacy residency at KU, he served as residency program director at the University of Kansas Hospital and then helped transform the hospital to The University of Kansas Health System, where he has served as assistant director of pharmacy, director of pharmacy, executive director of pharmacy services and his current role as vice president of pharmacy and health professions.