Promotion in academia recognizes faculty members who have demonstrated sustained achievement and leadership in their areas of expertise. It reflects a rigorous evaluation of excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, and service, as well as each individual's contributions to the university, college, and broader profession.
"Academic promotion recognizes and rewards excellence among our faculty and plays a vital role in advancing the college’s mission. Faculty earn promotion by demonstrating sustained excellence in research, teaching, and service. We are proud to recognize four highly deserving faculty members whose accomplishments have earned them promotion this year,” said Dean, Jean M. Schmidt Chair, and Professor Jill Kolesar.
The University of Iowa (UI) College of Pharmacy is pleased to announce promotions for the following faculty members, effective July 1, 2026:
Guohua An, Professor
After earning her MD from Taishan Medical College and an MS in clinical pharmacology from Fudan University, An worked as a clinical pharmacist and research scientist at Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai, China. She later earned a PhD in pharmaceutical sciences from SUNY Buffalo and joined Abbott (now AbbVie), where she gained extensive experience in clinical drug development and pharmacokinetic/
pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) modeling and simulation. Before joining the UI, she served as an assistant professor at the University of Florida.
An’s research focuses on mechanism-based PK/PD modeling of both small- and large-molecules, model-informed drug development (MIDD) and model-informed clinical care (MICC), clinical pharmacology in special populations, and quantitative systems pharmacology.
She serves as an editor for the Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, The AAPS Journal, and the Journal of Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics. With 20 years in pharmaceutical sciences, she has published 102 peer-reviewed articles and wrote two single-author PK textbooks: Essentials in Clinical Pharmacokinetics (2024) and Advanced Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics (2025).
Erika Ernst, Professor
Erika J. Ernst, PharmD, is a professor of pharmacy in the Division of Health Services Research, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science. Her research focuses on the appropriate use of antimicrobial agents.
Ernst is also a clinical pharmacy specialist in infectious diseases in the Department of Pharmaceutical Care at University of Iowa Health Care, where she teaches pharmacy students and provides patient care on the infectious diseases consult service. She is a member of the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee and the Antibiotic Advisory Taskforce. Ernst is also a Board-Certified Infectious Diseases Pharmacist (BCIDP) and an associate editor of the Journal of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (JACCP).
After receiving her Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from the University of Southern California, Ernst went on to complete a pharmacy practice residency at Los Angeles County USC Medical Center followed by an infectious diseases fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco School of Pharmacy.
Benjamin Miskle, Clinical Associate Professor
Benjamin Miskle, PharmD, is a Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science at the UI College of Pharmacy and a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in the Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmaceutical Care at UI Health Care. He earned his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Missouri–Kansas City and completed PGY-1 and PGY-2 residencies in general pharmacy practice and psychiatry at the Chillicothe Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
His clinical and scholarly work focuses on psychiatric pharmacotherapy and the treatment of substance use disorders, and he has published extensively in the areas of addiction medicine and mental health. Miskle provides direct patient care in the Opioid Addiction Clinics at UI Health Care and has played a key role in securing grant funding to support innovative strategies and community partnerships to support training for student pharmacists, pharmacists, nurses, and other health professionals across Iowa in overdose recognition and naloxone education.
He is an active member of the Iowa Pharmacy Association, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, and the American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists, and his contributions have been recognized with honors such as the Excellence in Innovation Award and Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year.
Mary E. Ray, Clinical Professor
Mary Elizabeth Ray, PharmD, has been promoted to clinical professor and serves as associate dean for academic affairs at the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy. In her leadership role, she directs academic operations for the PharmD program, advancing curriculum, assessment, and accreditation.
Ray has established a sustained national impact in pharmacy education through a body of scholarship focused on assessment, curriculum design, and student success. Her work has been widely published in peer-reviewed journals and recognized with multiple national awards for both scholarly writing and curriculum innovation, including the 2024 AACP Rufus A. Lyman Award for the most outstanding paper published in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education.
At the UI, Ray has led critical updates to the professional curriculum and directed the college’s accreditation strategy, including serving as chair of the PharmD program’s ACPE self-study. Through national service, including work as an Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education program evaluator and leadership within the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, she contributes to shaping accreditation and assessment practices across pharmacy education.
Ray's work continues to support student success and strengthen pharmacy education at both the institutional and national levels.
Mary C. Schroeder, Professor
A health economist whose work focuses on improving cancer care delivery and outcomes, Mary Schroeder earned her BS in physics from Texas A&M University and her PhD in economics from Emory University. Her research examines how information, incentives, uncertainty, and structural
constraints influence treatment decisions and health care delivery across the cancer care continuum.
Schroeder's scholarship centers on two primary areas: improving the quality and accessibility of cancer care for rural and underserved populations, and leveraging real-world, data-driven approaches to advance patient-centered cancer treatment. Through her work, she investigates cancer care quality improvement, implementation of health system interventions, and disparities in access to care. She also applies integrated clinical and administrative data resources to better understand treatment patterns, outcomes, and health care utilization among patients with cancer.
By combining methods and perspectives from health services research, oncology, epidemiology, implementation science, and clinical informatics, Schroeder generates evidence that informs policy and practice. Her interdisciplinary research helps health care providers and systems identify barriers to high-quality care, implement effective interventions, and improve outcomes for patients across diverse populations and care settings.