Alumna receives prestigious teaching award

Kelly Gable (PharmD 04) delivers a commencement speech at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

elly Gable, a University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy alumna, was recently awarded the Teaching Excellence Award from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Presented once a year, the award is the highest teaching honor a faculty member at SIUE can receive.

Gable, who received her Pharm.D. from Ole Miss in 2004, is an associate professor in SIUE’s Department of Pharmacy Practice. She is the first School of Pharmacy faculty member to be given this recognition from SIUE.

“It is quite an honor,” Gable said. “I work with amazing faculty and have great respect for their work, both in the classroom and in their labs and practice sites.”

Gable’s teaching and professional accolades are numerous. She is the first and only clinical pharmacist in the state of Missouri (SIUE is about 20 miles northeast of St. Louis) to achieve provider recognition from the Department of Mental Health, allowing her to provide psychiatric services to hundreds of patients in the greater St. Louis region. Her provider status also allows for reimbursement of her services through the state Medicaid system.

To gain this designation, Gable spent seven years working in the Missouri health care system as part of her service through her academic position at SIUE. She works clinically at Places for People, a nonprofit organization that provides care and services to those recovering from mental illnesses. She provides Medication Therapy Services (MTS) through a collaborative practice agreement with a psychiatrist at Places for People. 

Gable is also an adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Neurology and Psychiatry at St. Louis University School of Medicine. Involvement within mental health care was her initial inspiration to teach.

“I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to bring a better knowledge and awareness of the mental health care system to pharmacy, nursing, medical, education and social work students,” Gable said. “I recognized early on in my career the powerful impact one can have with each individual patient encounter, and that as an educator, you have the potential to touch even more lives through what you teach your students.”

Chris Herndon, also an associate professor in SIUE’s pharmacy practice department, said that Gable is “the quintessential clinical academician, blending scholarship and clinical service into her innovative teaching methods.” Herndon said his colleagues are very proud of Gable’s accomplishments.

Gable said she believes that her experiences at the UM School of Pharmacy have strongly influenced her success. One of her most influential mentors at the university was David McCaffrey, former professor of pharmacy administration.

“I was never a ‘model’ student, and he encouraged me to think outside of the box and to push the limits,” she said. “He encouraged me to finish the Pharm.D. program, and I have no doubt that his influence throughout my education at Ole Miss has allowed me to develop into the educator and clinician that I am today.”

Gable was presented with the Teaching Excellence Award at SIUE’s spring commencement ceremony and subsequently delivered the commencement speech at the university’s fall commencement ceremony on Dec. 13.

A combined love of her daughter and Dr. Seuss inspired Gable’s speech. Her advice is applicable to students everywhere.

“Be passionate about what you do. If it makes you happy to help people – do it,” she said. “If it doesn’t, do it anyway. Life is short and full of many gifts. Being kind, compassionate and caring is the best gift you can give.”