{"id":152973,"date":"2025-10-28T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=152973"},"modified":"2025-10-27T14:06:25","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T19:06:25","slug":"school-of-pharmacy-alumnus-creates-new-scholarship-fund","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/school-of-pharmacy-alumnus-creates-new-scholarship-fund\/","title":{"rendered":"School of Pharmacy Alumnus Creates New Scholarship Fund"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Stan Williams honors his past, looks to school&#8217;s future<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>by Andy Belt<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>New Orleans<\/strong> native <strong>Stan Williams<\/strong>&#8216; love for <strong>Louisiana State University<\/strong> has never diminished his admiration for the <strong>University of Mississippi<\/strong>. Ever since his graduation from the UM <strong>School of Pharmacy<\/strong> in 1989, he has remained a steadfast supporter of the school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Williams&#8217; undergraduate career began at <strong>LSU <\/strong>before he transferred to&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tracking.us.nylas.com\/l\/61345672a73d44eab2223510ff7c85f4\/1\/81d3ff0c43bd7764a7363ff6741a9dc67d87e43fa6d4ff75c5505691d41edda6?cache_buster=1761412170\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Ole Mis<\/strong>s<\/a>, where he would eventually leave his mark with numerous conversations with students and donations over the years. His most recent $75,000 gift to the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tracking.us.nylas.com\/l\/61345672a73d44eab2223510ff7c85f4\/2\/00b3f27f5cf2dd35548be7c89ad8cb2b6b6c989fd0640dc7345331722974286b?cache_buster=1761412170\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">School of Pharmacy<\/a>&nbsp;establishes the Magnolia and Crescent Pharmacy Scholarship Fund, which honors his roots in both <strong>Mississippi <\/strong>and <strong>Louisiana<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The new scholarship, which will grow into an endowment to be awarded in perpetuity, will be for students who transfer from LSU, with secondary preference for students who hail from the <strong>Gulf Coast<\/strong> or <strong>Harrison, Hancock<\/strong>, or <strong>Jackson <\/strong>counties in Mississippi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Williams was raised in the <strong>Magnolia State<\/strong> and graduated high school at <strong>Saint Stanislaus College<\/strong> in <strong>Bay St. Louis<\/strong>. Following his transfer to Ole Miss, Williams fostered strong relationships with the pharmacy school faculty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;They were very open and willing to work with the students,&#8221; Williams remembered. &#8220;It was about 100 to 110 students in each graduating class with lots of camaraderie; we did a lot of things together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The faculty participated in the activities we had: ball games, picnics, parties. It wasn&#8217;t like your traditional college situation or relationship.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since college, Williams has had a long career in the health care industry, though not as a traditional pharmacist. In fact, he has returned to the pharmacy school to inform students that there are numerous &#8220;non-traditional&#8221; career paths they can choose within the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Williams&#8217; career took him across the country, working for industry titans such as <strong>Eli Lilly, Quest Diagnostics<\/strong>, and <strong>Abbott Vascular<\/strong>. He lives in <strong>Fort Worth, Texas<\/strong>, and is the director of national accounts for <strong>Pacira Biosciences<\/strong>, a pharma\/biotech company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Within the school, Williams is a member of the Dean&#8217;s Advisory Council. His dedication to the pharmacy school goes back decades, with his first donation six month after graduation. In fact, the school is even named as the beneficiary of his life insurance policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Williams&#8217; scholarship fund was finalized recently, after two years in the making, said <strong>Laura Gullett<\/strong>, the school&#8217;s associate director of development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Stan is one of the most enthusiastic alumni that I know,&#8221; Gullett said. &#8220;He has a generous heart and loves the School of Pharmacy. I joke with him that his love for the pharmacy school is only second to his love for LSU. He&#8217;s someone that you want rooting for you.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dean <strong>Donna Strum<\/strong> thanked Williams for his gift that will support students preparing to become successful in the pharmacy profession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;With the founding of Stan&#8217;s scholarship fund, students in the School of Pharmacy will be able to support their education and become potential leaders of tomorrow&#8217;s pharmaceutical industry,&#8221; she said. &#8220;It is because of the generosity of donors like Stan that we continue to have one of the leading pharmacy programs in the country and are able to attract such high-caliber students.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Williams credits his success in business and in the pharmaceutical industry to his time as a student in <strong>Oxford<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;I attribute my career all back to Ole Miss,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It was a great experience.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To make a gift to the Magnolia and Crescent Pharmacy Scholarship Fund, send a check with the fund&#8217;s name written in the memo line to the University of Mississippi Foundation, 406 University Ave., Oxford, MS 38655; or&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tracking.us.nylas.com\/l\/61345672a73d44eab2223510ff7c85f4\/3\/85fc8977c2f4b4f2aaabd8f64916237e3a557d694f520d63ffb170b5ca63cf19?cache_buster=1761412170\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">click here<\/a>&nbsp;to contribute online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/TheLocalVoiceLigature-25web.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"25\" height=\"16\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/TheLocalVoiceLigature-25web.jpg?resize=25%2C16\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-14544\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"430\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo-1024x688.jpg?resize=640%2C430&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-152974\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?resize=1024%2C688&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?resize=300%2C202&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?resize=768%2C516&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?resize=1536%2C1032&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?w=1539&amp;ssl=1 1539w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Stan-Williams-grad-photo.jpg?w=1280 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">University of Mississippi alumnus Stan Williams (right) celebrates his graduation with Marvin Wilson, professor of pharmacology in the School of Pharmacy. Submitted photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"394\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-1024x631.jpg?resize=640%2C394&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-152975\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?resize=1024%2C631&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?resize=300%2C185&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C473&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?resize=1536%2C946&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?resize=2048%2C1261&amp;ssl=1 2048w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?w=1280 1280w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?w=1920 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">University of Mississippi pharmacy students show off their white coats to family, friends and supporters following the School of Pharmacy&#8217;s annual white coat ceremony, signifying the students&#8217; entry into the professional program. A scholarship established by alumnus Stan Williams will help students from the Gulf Coast area earn their pharmacy degrees. Photo by Bill Dabney\/UM Foundation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Stan Williams honors his past, looks to school&#8217;s future by Andy Belt New Orleans native Stan Williams&#8216; love<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":123462,"featured_media":152975,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17687],"tags":[32915,20769,17079,32913,4764,22073,30516,20027,18348,32917,2299,17680,2086,19986,5,896,7067,4,32916,32912,14909,32911,792,655],"class_list":["post-152973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-university-of-mississippi","tag-abbott-vascular","tag-bay-st-louis","tag-donna-strum","tag-eli-lilly","tag-fort-worth","tag-gulf-coast","tag-hancock-county","tag-harrison-county","tag-jackson-county","tag-laura-gullett","tag-louisiana","tag-louisiana-state-university","tag-lsu","tag-magnolia-state","tag-mississippi","tag-new-orleans","tag-ole-miss","tag-oxford","tag-pacira-biosciences","tag-saint-stanislaus-college","tag-school-of-pharmacy","tag-stan-williams","tag-texas","tag-university-of-mississippi"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/White-Coats-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1576&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/123462"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152973"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152973\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":153000,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152973\/revisions\/153000"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/152975"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=152973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=152973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}