Gary Yee, PharmD, retires with an impact on UNMC, pharmacy

Gary Yee, PharmD, now emeritus professor of pharmacy practice and science, retired earlier this year after more than 26 years at UNMC. He first came to the medical center for a chance to be a department chair, and he was chair of pharmacy practice at the UNMC College of Pharmacy from 1998-2006. But he also became one of those invaluable leaders who make an impact on UNMC by serving in several different roles.

Dr. Yee was associate dean for academic affairs in the UNMC College of Pharmacy for a decade. Then, UNMC’s associate vice chancellor for academic affairs. He later took on interim, then permanent leadership of the UNMC Office of Faculty Affairs.

He looks back upon it all fondly.

“Institutions are just buildings, mortar and brick,” Dr. Yee said. “My favorite memories are working with great people. Working with great students. And working in an institution where the culture is strong, allowing me and people around me to succeed.”

Dr. Yee continued: “Where teamwork, accountability and success are celebrated and encouraged, and where people are kind and treated with respect.”

He said he hoped he contributed to that culture. “I hired a lot of good people, many of whom are still there,” he said. “I’m proud of that.”

UNMC Interim Chancellor H. Dele Davies, MD, said he enjoyed working with Dr. Yee no matter what role he held.

“During his time at UNMC, Dr. Yee has been a devoted researcher, educator and mentor to generations of students and faculty,” Dr. Davies said. “In his role as associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, Dr. Yee provided invaluable insights and helped guide and oversee many faculty affairs programs and portfolios. He also helped lay the foundation for a campus-wide faculty mentorship program. I am grateful for his distinguished service over the years. I wish him a very successful and well-deserved retirement.”

Courtney Fletcher, PharmD, former dean of the UNMC College of Pharmacy, said: “He is that academic triple threat, who is talked a lot about, but rarely seen.”

Keith Olsen, PharmD, former Joseph D. Williams Endowed Dean, succeeded Dr. Yee as chair of pharmacy practice.

“It was truly an honor to consider Gary a colleague and mentor,” Dr. Olsen said. “Gary Yee has earned an international reputation for his outstanding in achievements in all aspects of academia, research, education and professional service.”

And Dr. Yee had an impact on yet another dean.

“Gary Yee is the reason I came to UNMC in 2005,” said Don Klepser, PhD, now interim dean of the UNMC College of Pharmacy. “He took a chance on a new grad, who had no real idea what it meant to be a faculty member. As the chair of the department of pharmacy practice, he was an incredible mentor, who provided me with early opportunities to grow and challenge myself. More importantly, Gary promoted a culture that prioritized work/life balance. He truly cared about people, and I have tried to carry that example with me at every step of my career.”

Dr. Yee said changes to the curriculum, as well as good hires, helped boost the pharmacy practice department’s momentum while he was chair. As former associate dean, he also takes pride in the college’s now decades-long success in its license-exam pass rates, and that pharmacy was the first college at UNMC to go primarily digital.

“Even though that first year, students didn’t like it,” he said. “Now they love it.”

Dr. Fletcher said Dr. Yee’s impact is reflected in the college’s current success.

“When someone asks me why the UNMC College of Pharmacy punches above our weight in metrics of, for example, research and student success,” Dr. Fletcher said, “it is because of the dedication, commitment, and excellence of the faculty, modeled and exemplified by Gary.

“We are a better college and university because of Gary’s efforts.”

Dr. Yee served as president of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and is the current chair of the Board of Pharmacy Specialties. He was a prolific researcher, identified among the top 2% of the world’s most cited scientists in his respective field, according to a recent Stanford University study. He was once named one of America’s 25 top pharmacy professors by a national publication. He was one of the editors of the textbook “Pharmacotherapy: A Pathophysiologic Approach,” which is used in nearly every pharmacy school.

In 2011, UNMC pharmacy students donated enough money toward breast cancer research to choose a faculty member to dress as a pink superhero and picked Dr. Yee as their representative. He wore the costume with good humor.

Dr. Yee, who is originally from Seattle, hadn’t planned on making Nebraska his home. “But I just continued to find opportunities that were challenging and a good fit for my skill set,” he said. “And then of course the community, which is very, very welcoming.” Now he has no desire to live anywhere else.

But he is looking forward, he said, to spending more time with children and grandchildren, including some who live far away. He and his wife, Esther, recently celebrated 40 years of marriage.

Dr. Yee earned his PharmD at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science and was a postdoctoral fellow at St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. He also worked at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Florida before coming to UNMC.

“Job well done, Gary,” Dr. Fletcher said, “and I wish you good happiness and health in your retirement.”