Creighton University - School of Pharmacy and Health Professions

B.S., Nebraska Wesleyan University, 1973; M.S., University of Nebraska College of Pharmacy, 1976; Ph.D., University of Nebraska Medical Center, 1981.

PROFESSIONAL BIOSKETCH:

Victoria F. Roche is Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Senior Associate Dean at the Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions. She received the Bachelor of Science degree in both Chemistry and Spanish from Nebraska Wesleyan University in 1973, and both the Masters and the Ph.D. degree in Biomedicinal Chemistry from the University of Nebraska College of Pharmacy, the latter in 1981. Dr. Roche is responsible for chemistry instruction in Creighton’s pharmacy program and has offered courses in medicinal chemistry, pharmaceutical sciences principles, rational drug design and independent research. She also coordinates a course that engages students in service to Native American populations.

Dr. Roche is a Past President of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy and the 2007 recipient of the AACP Robert K. Chalmers Distinguished Educator Award. Dr. Roche and has served the Association as a member of the Janus Commission, the Argus Commission, the Providing Service to the Underserved Task Force and as Chair of both the Section of Teachers of Chemistry and the Women Faculty SIG. She is also a Past National President of the Rho Chi Pharmacy Honor Society and served several years as Region V Councilor. She was a recipient of AACP Innovations in Teaching Awards in 1997, 1999 and 2007, and was recognized with an Honorable Mention for her 2002 and 2005 Innovations portfolios. She also received the AACP Lyman Award in July, 2000. Dr. Roche has been the recipient of numerous pharmacy teaching and student service awards at Creighton, and is a past recipient of the University's Distinguished Faculty Administrator Award. 

Dr. Roche has been funded through the NIH's Academic Research Enhancement Program to investigate the synthesis and evaluation of reduced and bicyclic hexahydroaporphines as dopamine receptor probes, and by the State of Nebraska for the synthesis and evaluation of bicyclic benzyloctahydroisoquinolines as thromboxane A2 receptor antagonists and beta 2-selective agonists. She holds a patent on the synthesis and use of bicyclic hexahydroaporphines and octahydroisoquinolines in lowering intraocular pressure.

Dr. Roche’s educational research efforts center on the development of reflective dispositions and the direction of students into careers in service to underserved populations, the effective instruction of medicinal chemistry to professional students and the use of written and computerized case studies in the instruction of practice-oriented medicinal chemistry. She is an assistant editor on the 6th Edition of the textbook "Foye's Principles of Medicinal Chemistry" (Lemke, Williams, Roche and Zito) and authored the "Cancer and Chemotherapy" chapter in that text.  She is a co-author of the Medicinal Chemistry Case Study Workbook (Currie, Roche and Zito), and the Computerized Therapeutic Case Studies in Medicinal Chemistry CD (Roche and Zito). Her pedagogical research has been funded by AACP and SmithKline Beecham through the Grant Award to Pharmacy Schools program, as well as the Midwest Consortium for Service Learning in Higher Education.

Zweber, A, Roche, V.F., Assemi, M., Conry, J.M., Shane-McWhorter, L, Sorensen, T.D., “Caring for the Underserved:  Shaping the Doctor of Pharmacy Curriculum to Meet the Needs of the Community and the Profession.”  American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 72(3), Article 53 (2008)

Roche, V.F., Jones, R.M, Hinman, C.E., Seoldo, N. “A Service-Learning Elective in Native American Culture, Health and Professional Practice” American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 71(6), Article 129(2007).

Roche, V.F. “The Chemically Elegant Proton Pump Inhibitors: A Self-Contained, Clinically Relevant Medicinal Chemistry Lesson” American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 70(5), Article 101(2006).

Roche, V.F., et. al. “Roadmap to 2015: Preparing Competent Pharmacists and Pharmacy Faculty for the Future” (Combined Report of the 2005-06 Argus Commission and the Academic Affairs, Professional Affairs and Research and Graduate Affairs Committees). American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 70(5), Article S5(2006)

Ohia, S.E. Zhan-G.-L., LeDay, A.M., Opere, C.A., Kulkarni, K.H., Harris, L.C., Roche, V.F. “Ocular Pharmacology of Bicyclic Derivatives of Hexahydroaporphines” Methods and Findings in Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology, 27(2), 87-93(2005).

Alsharif, N.A., Roche, V.F., Ogunbadeniyi, A.M, Chapman, R., Bramble, J.D. “Evaluation Of Performance And Learning Parity Between Two Required On-Campus And Web-Based Medicinal Chemistry Courses.” American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 69, Article 33(2005).

Roche, V.F., Abro, N.M., Lisak, C.B, Olson, D. D., Beagle, P. “A Pilot Project Designed to Meet HRSA National Goals for Children’s Health: The Seamore Starfish Initiative.” American Journal of Allied Health, 34(2), e87-94(2005).

Roche, V.F., Alsharif, N.A., Ogunbadeniyi, A.M. “Reinforcing the Relevance of Medicinal Chemistry to the Practice of Pharmacy through the Who Wants to Be a Med. Chem. Millionaire Learning Game.” Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 68, Article 112(2004).

Cohen, J.L., Nahata, M.C., Roche, V.F., Smith, R.E., Wells, B.G., Helling, D. and Maine, L.L. “Pharmaceutical Care in the 21st Century: From Pockets of Excellence to Standard of Care”, Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 68, S9(2004).

Kabat, H.F., Cohen, J.L., Nahata, M.C., Roche, V.F., and Smith, R.E. “Building Upon Our Strengths: Report of the 2002-03 AACP Argus Commission”, Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 67, S03(2003).

Rutledge, C.O., Cohen, J.L, Kabat, H.F., Roche, V.F., and Smith, R.E. “How Should AACP Adapt to Change? The Report of the 2001-2002 AACP Argus Commission”, Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 66, 7S-11S(2002)

Roche, V.F., Alsharif, N.A., “Stayin’ Alive: Advancing Medicinal Chemistry by Enhancing Student Responsibility for Learning” Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 66, 319-328(2002)

Saha, S, Roche, V.F., , Pendola, K., Kearley, M., Lei, L.,. Romstedt, K.J., Herdman, M., Shams, G., Kaisare, V., Feller, D.R., “Synthesis and In Vitro Platelet Aggregation and TP-Receptor Binding Studies on Bicyclic 5,8-Ethanooctahydroisoquinolines and 5,8-Ethanotetrahydroisoquinolines.” Bioorg. Med. Chem., 10, 2779-2793(2002)
Saha, S., Igbo, I., Taniyama, J., Opere, C., Ohia, S. and Roche, V.F., “Assessment of the intraocular pressure-lowering activity of bicyclic derivatives of 1-substituted benzyloctahydroisoquinoline.” J. Ocular Pharmacol. Ther., 17(5), 413-420(2001)

Alsharif, N.A., Shara, M., Roche, V.F., “Structurally Based Therapeutic Evaluation (SBTE): An Opportunity for Curriculum Integration and Interdisciplinary Teaching” Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 65(4), 314-323(2001)