After more than three decades working in Drake University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, including the last eight years as dean, Renae Chesnut will step down from her deanship on Jan. 31, 2024, completing an administrative sabbatical until her official retirement on Dec. 31, 2024. During that time, she will support the launch of a new academic program currently in development. Chuck Phillips, professor of pharmacy administration and associate dean of assessment and curriculum, has been named interim dean of the college. The university has initiated a national search for the next dean of the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. A new dean is expected to be named in the spring of 2024 with a start date of July 1, 2024. “As Dean Chesnut begins the next chapter of her life, she leaves behind an indelible mark on Drake University’s College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences,” Drake University Provost Sue Mattison said in a prepared statement. “She has mentored, guided and positively impacted thousands of students who have graduated from the College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences under her tenure, many of whom have gone on to become local and national leaders in their fields. Her impact on the pharmacy and health science profession will be felt for generations.”