April 21, 2025
By Ashley MasseyAUBURN, Alabama - Recognizing outstanding qualities of leadership, citizenship, character and promise of professional ability, Briley Graves, a member of the Harrison College of Pharmacy Class of 2025, was recently recognized with the President’s Award.
“As Auburn men and women, we are guided by The Auburn Creed, which highlights the importance of the human touch, mutual helpfulness, and happiness for all,” said Dean Leigh Ann Ross. “Briley has genuinely embodied those qualities during her time at Auburn.”
Originally from Decatur, Alabama, Graves graduated from Priceville High School in 2017 and went on to pursue a bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from the University of South Alabama.
When deciding on a pharmacy school post-graduation, Graves was looking for a place where there was a commitment to innovation and evidence-based teaching models, and the Harrison College of Pharmacy (HCOP) stood out to her.
“The ability to engage in a holistic, practice-ready curriculum was exciting to me because it aligned with my learning style,” said Graves. “I was also intrigued by the satellite Mobile campus for its more personable environment, increased leadership opportunities and connection to the large USA Health system.”
Graves has been an active leader at HCOP and on the Mobile Campus. She served as an officer with the Student Ambassadors, as well as the American Pharmacists Association-Academy of Student Pharmacists and Phi Delta Chi professional fraternity. She was inducted into Rho Chi, the academic honor society for pharmacy, and served as an officer in Phi Lambda Sigma, the international pharmacy leadership society.
Graves chose to pursue pharmacy because she has always had a strong interest in math and chemistry, which served her well within the engineering school for her undergraduate degree. However, she later realized that engineering lacked the opportunity to interact with the community and gauge the impact of her work on others.
Wanting to explore her opportunities and another potential career path, she found pharmacy.
“This desire to work alongside and provide education to my community, coupled with my enthusiasm for science, led me to pharmacy,” said Graves. “I love that as a pharmacist I am an accessible patient resource and an expert in medication therapy.”
Graves loved that HCOP has a diverse offering of leadership opportunities from student organizations, peer teaching and advocacy for the college. Through these opportunities, she developed a number of qualities a pharmacist should have like leadership skills, professionalism and high character, all of which are components of the President’s Award honor.“In particular, I enjoyed being an ambassador for HCOP, where I was allowed to push myself socially while participating in prospective student outreach,” said Graves. “Additionally, HCOP provides support for students who are interested in participating in local and national leadership roles within pharmacy organizations, which provides ideas and guidance that, in turn, helps us to strengthen our institution.”
While a student on the Mobile Campus, Graves was able to be involved in community outreach opportunities like the USA Student Run Free Clinic. She was also selected as an Albert Schweitzer Fellowship recipient and developed an outreach project with classmate Lila Parrish that addressed barriers to medications in the community.
“I will never forget all the social events that my class frequently hosted for each other. Knowing that our satellite campus class was smaller than HCOP’s main campus, we chose to embrace this community and celebrate all aspects of our lives with each other,” said Graves.
“In particular, my time at the USA Student Run Free Clinic provided me with my first exposure to patient care as a P1 and instilled in me an interest in addressing health disparities in underserved communities.”
Graves will receive her Doctor of Pharmacy at HCOP’s Commencement Ceremony on May 12 in Neville Arena. Following graduation, she will begin her career as a PGY-1 pharmacy resident at the Gulf Coast VA Health Care System in Pensacola, Florida. With interests in diabetes management and cardiology, she hopes to pursue a career in ambulatory care with an additional role in academia.
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Auburn University's Harrison College of Pharmacy is ranked among the top 20 percent of all colleges of pharmacy in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report. Fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), the College offers doctoral degrees in pharmacy (Pharm.D.) and pharmaceutical sciences (Ph.D.) while also offering a master's in pharmaceutical sciences and a bachelor’s in drug and biopharmaceutical sciences. The College’s commitment to world-class scholarship and interdisciplinary research speaks to Auburn’s overarching Carnegie R1 designation that places Auburn among the top 100 doctoral research universities in the nation. For more information about the College, please call 334.844.8348 or visit http://pharmacy.auburn.edu.