UM honors Wilson for service to students

Marvin C. Wilson, associate dean for academic and student affairs

or almost 20 years, the Frist Student Service Award has recognized University of Mississippi employees who go above and beyond the call of duty in their commitment to students.

The university presented one of these coveted awards to Marvin C. Wilson, the School of Pharmacy’s associate dean for academic and student affairs.

Wilson and another Frist Award recipient, Amy Saxton, operations supervisor in the Division of Outreach and Continuing Education, were chosen from dozens of nominees, submitted by students, alumni, faculty and staff. A chancellor’s committee weighed all the nominations and made the picks.

“Our faculty and staff work hard to be service-oriented and to help students any way they can, so to be recognized by their peers and by students as a leader in service affirms the extraordinary level of commitment of the Frist recipients,” Chancellor Dan Jones said.

The awards, one for faculty and one for staff, were established with a gift from Dr. Thomas F. Frist Sr. of Nashville, a 1930 UM graduate. This is the 19th year for the awards.

The recipients each received $1,000 and a plaque and were honored during UM’s main commencement ceremony May 11.

“I am so humbled that the university has chosen to acknowledge me in this way,” Wilson said. “It’s quite overwhelming. The Frist Award is such a great honor, and it means so much to me that people on our campus chose to nominate me for the award.”

Wilson has been a faculty member at the School of Pharmacy for 42 years. As associate dean for academic and student affairs, he has been involved in the education of literally thousands of pharmacy students. He also serves as a professor of pharmacology and research professor in the Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. He holds a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from West Virginia University and a doctorate in pharmacology from the University of Michigan.

As associate dean, Wilson is responsible for academic advising for all the university’s early-entry and pre-pharmacy students, but he is so dedicated to helping all the school’s students that many nominations praised his role as mentor and confidant.

“I am amazed by the details that Dr. Wilson knows about each of our students, not just where they are from but also about their career and personal interests,” one nomination said. “He takes the time to meet with each of our students one-on-one at least twice during their time in pharmacy school to talk about their development as well as to gather feedback on the school’s performance.”

Another letter praised Wilson’s dedication to helping students interact with the school’s faculty. “He often visits the student lounge to chat with us about how the semester is going. There have been various times that he has gone out of the way to encourage me.”

Wilson recently announced his retirement from the university, effective June 30. After learning about his plans, the school’s students organized a retirement reception.

“The fact that I am retiring this year makes the award a bittersweet honor,” Wilson said. “I have been so blessed to work with the students, faculty and staff in the School of Pharmacy.

“The students have been so intelligent, passionate, service-oriented, and expect a lot of themselves and each other. I wouldn’t trade my experience (here) for anything. It has been so rewarding to have my prior students become members of our faculty and leaders and innovators of the pharmacy profession in Mississippi.”