Ernest Little (1888-1973): Champion of the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education

Abstract

In compiling the semicentennial history of the American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education (AFPE), Albert B. Fisher, Jr., its president for 12 years, commemorated the contributions of Ernest Little noting that much of its early success was due to him.1.Fisher A.B. A half century of service to pharmacy, 1942-1992. American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education, Fairlawn, N.J1992: 189-190Google Scholar Indeed, the very creation of the Foundation was largely a consequence of Dean Little's work with the National Drug Trade Conference.2.Bliven C. Ernest Little.Am J Pharm Educ. 1974; 38: 125Google Scholar Rufus Lyman, in reporting Little's selection for the 1949 Remington Medal, wrote of his involvement “in every movement for the betterment of pharmaceutical education and practice.… No man has ever more worthily received this honor.”3.Lyman R.A. Editorial.Am J Pharm Educ. 1949; 13: 552Google Scholar Ernest Little, the son of John and Martha Snook Little, was born on June 9, 1888, in Johnstown, N.Y. After graduating from high school he studied chemistry at the University of Rochester, receiving a bachelor of science degree in 1911 and master of science in 1912. From 1911 to 1914, he served as an instructor in chemistry at the university and then at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn from 1914 to 1918. He continued his graduate studies at the University of Graz in Austria before receiving a master of arts degree in 1918 and doctor of philosophy in chemistry in 1924 from Columbia University.4.Bowers R.A. Cowen D.L. The Rutgers University College of Pharmacy: a centennial history. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, N.J1991Google Scholar Ernest Little married Margaret Lucy Weaver on July 1, 1913; the couple had two sons, John and Robert.5.Marquis A.N. Who's who in Pennsylvania.Chicago: A.N. Marquis Co. 1939; 524–5Google Scholar Ernest Little died on October 30, 1973, in St. Johnsbury, Vt. In 1918, Ernest Little accepted an appointment as an assistant professor in chemistry at Rutgers University at New Brunswick. That same year he began a part-time association with the New Jersey College of Pharmacy as professor of physics and chemistry.6.Anonymous The president of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, 1934-1935.J Am Pharm Assoc. 1934; 23: 651-652Google Scholar The New Jersey College of Pharmacy was formed in Newark as a proprietary school in 1892. While initially successful, by the first decade of the 20th century the school faced declining enrollment and accreditation difficulties with the state boards of pharmacy in both New Jersey and New York. Robert Fischelis was hired as the dean in 1921 with the mandate to secure accreditation, and he led the initial drive to affiliate the college with Rutgers University.7.Worthen D.B. Heroes of pharmacy: Robert Phillip Fischelis 1891-1981: pharmacy activist.J Am Pharm Assoc. 2006; 46: 294-297Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar Fischelis resigned the deanship in 1925 and was succeeded by Caswell Mayo, who was not successful as a dean. The trustees of the college of pharmacy named Ernest Little acting dean in 1926 looking forward to an eventual affiliation with Rutgers. Little's first objective was the complete consolidation of the college by the university, and in this his was a fortuitous appointment. An accomplished scientist and administrator, he was fully aware of the needs of both institutions. His initial steps to increase the quality of the curriculum and stabilize enrollment led to the 1927 university resolution accepting the college and making it an integral part of the university; at the same time the name was changed to Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, New Jersey College of Pharmacy.8.Bowers R.A. Cowen D.L. The Rutgers University College of Pharmacy: a centennial history. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, N.J1991Google Scholar Little was named dean of the college by the university trustees in 1929 with the immediate challenge of implementing the mandatory 4-year bachelor of science in pharmacy. As was the case with a number of proprietary and association schools that affiliated with state universities, administrators assumed the pharmacy programs would be financially self-sufficient. In 1938 the American Council on Pharmaceutical Education (ACPE; now the Accreditation Council on Pharmacy Education) notified all colleges of potential loss of accreditation, effective in 1944, unless at least 20% of the funding came from something other than student tuition and fees.9.American Council on Pharmaceutical Education.J Am Pharm Assoc. 27. 1938: 64-65Google Scholar Little enlisted the support of the university administration and the New Jersey Pharmaceutical Association (NJPA) and finally gained the first state appropriation in 1941. At a GlanceEach installment in this series will provide a sketch of a hero of pharmacy. Each sketch will provide some insights into the hero's life and his or her contributions to the profession. JAPhA is offering this column in recognition of the men and women who led the efforts to make pharmacy the respected profession it is today. Each installment in this series will provide a sketch of a hero of pharmacy. Each sketch will provide some insights into the hero's life and his or her contributions to the profession. JAPhA is offering this column in recognition of the men and women who led the efforts to make pharmacy the respected profession it is today. The war years were challenging for all pharmacy schools, and the Rutgers pharmacy school faced the challenges of declining enrollments and accelerated courses. Colleges implemented a 3-year accelerated program, but even that was not sufficient to gain draft deferment of students. Dean Little, along with the deans at Temple University and the University of Maryland, devised a super-accelerated 2-year bachelor of science program that met the minimum requirements for student contact hours but failed to gain approval of either the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) or the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP).10.Worthen D.B. Pharmacy in World War II.in: Pharmaceutical Products Press, Binghamton, N.Y2004: 19-28Google Scholar The strain of college and association leadership during the war years was a consideration in Little's decision to resign as dean and return to the faculty as professor of chemistry in 1946; he taught until his retirement in 1953.4.Bowers R.A. Cowen D.L. The Rutgers University College of Pharmacy: a centennial history. Rutgers University Press, New Brunswick, N.J1991Google Scholar Ernest Little emerged early in his career as an outspoken leader for educational standards. In 1932 he served as the chair of the AACP Committee on Membership Standards during the debate on what degree should be awarded. The doctor of pharmacy degree (PharmD) had been awarded by some schools for completion of only a 3-year course of study; Little recommended the abolishment of the degree noting that the lack of standards discredited it completely.11.Buerki RA. In search of excellence. Am J Pharm Educ. 199;63(suppl):55.Google Scholar This was the same year that ACPE was organized with representatives of American Pharmaceutical (now Pharmacists) Association (APhA), AACP, NABP, and the American Council on Education with a mandate to establish criteria for accreditation of a college or school of pharmacy. In 1933 Little was elected AACP vice-president and, in 1934, president. In his presidential address, Little recommended that all members read the earlier presidential addresses as the basis for ongoing discussions; he believed this would help produce a better informed membership and increase Association progress. In his effort to improve and increase educational standards, he warned against complacency brought on by past successes for “such an attitude constitutes retrogression, and if followed for even a short time, leads only to disaster.”12.Little E. Address of the president of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.J Am Pharm Assoc. 1935; 24: 659-673Crossref Google Scholar In his own candid fashion he challenged the colleges to increase the professionalism of the community pharmacist, whom he termed the corner-stone of the foundation of our profession claiming that the leadership was the responsibility of educators. Little argued that admission criteria needed to include character, reliability, and aptitude for professional work not just scholarship and to meet this approach pharmacy aptitude tests needed to be developed and implemented. From 1936 to 1941 Little served as the chair of the AACP Executive Committee. In 1942, AACP appointed Little one of its representatives on the ACPE board of directors, where he served until 1948, including service as its vice-president in 1946–47. In 1933 Ernest Little served as the founding president of the Northern New Jersey Branch of APhA.13.Griffenhagen G.B. Higby G. Sonnedecker G. Swann J. 150 years of caring. American Pharmaceutical Association, Washington, D.C2002: 175Google Scholar In 1937 he was elected vice-chairman of the APhA House of Delegates and in 1948 president of APhA. Ernest Little was an avowed advocate of the Pharmaceutical Survey (1946–49), also known as the Elliott Report. In his APhA presidential address he noted that the responsibility of making the Survey work had to be the job of the profession, as no one else would do it. He referred to the sentiment of some that the earlier Charters Study (1924–27) may not have accomplished all that it might, but he added that it was because of pharmacy and not the study itself: “We have got to stop hoping for things and learn how to work hard for the things we desire for the future of our profession.”14.Little E. The president's address.J Am Pharm Assoc, Pract Pharm Ed. 1949; 10: 274-285Google Scholar From 1930 until 1940 Little served on the United States Pharmacopoeia Committee of Revision and as a trustee of this organization from 1940 to 1960. He headed its Committee on Usefulness in the 1950s, through which he worked to clarify the lines of responsibilities between the Board of Trustees and the Committee of Revision.15.Anderson L. Higby G. The spirit of volunteerism: the United States Pharmacopoeia 1820-1995.348. United States Pharmacopoeial Convention, Rockville, Md1995: 196-197Google Scholar The National Drug Trade Conference (NDTC) was formed in 1913 by five pharmacy industry and professional associations interested in legislation to control opium and narcotics: the American Drug Manufacturers Association, APhA, American Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, Federal Wholesale Druggists Association, and the National Association of Retail Druggists.16.Beal J.H. The proposed Pharmaceutical Federation.Drug Circ. 1919; 63: 131-135Google Scholar The legislation that eventually passed was the Harrison Narcotic Act in 1914. By 1935 the NDTC had expanded to include AACP, NABP, and the Proprietary Association; the National Association of Chain Drug Stores joined in 1947. From 1935 until 1940, Ernest Little served as the AACP representative to NDTC and chaired the Committee on Endowment. Charged with advising NDTC members of the financial needs of the colleges, Little's reports exposed the financial frailty of many of the colleges due to reduced funding and enrollments at a time of rising concerns about the shortages of pharmacists; he recommended the establishment of a foundation to address funding support. After a tortuous process to gain unanimous support, the NDTC approved formation of the AFPE on December 10, 1941.17.Little E. A step toward closer cooperation between industry and colleges of pharmacy.Am J Pharm Educ. 1942; 6: 111-116Google Scholar At the incorporation meeting on June 22, 1942, Ernest Little was elected chair to serve until the first annual meeting when he was elected the first president.18.Fisher A.B. A half century of service to pharmacy, 1942-1992.in: American Foundation for Pharmaceutical Education, Fairlawn, N.J1992: 1-9Google Scholar Initially, the Foundation had four objectives with the support for strong undergraduate programs the most important. As a first step two surveys were conducted to assess the needs of the colleges. Based on the data gathered about decreasing enrollment and lack of scholarship support, two scholarships of $200 were provided to each of the 64 colleges of pharmacy in 1943 and again in 1944. Each college received one $100 scholarship in 1945. Serious financial problems were reported by 17 colleges, with several reporting the possibility of closure. Grants ranging from $2,500 to $7,500 were awarded in 1944 to 13 schools having the most pressing needs. While these early grants were generous, the Foundation's total underwriting of Elliott's Pharmaceutical Survey was even greater. Ernest Little served as president and then director of AFPE until 1950, acting director in 1950 upon the death of Edwin Newcomb, and then on the Board of Grants until 1967. An important aspect of AFPE was the inclusion of all parties with an interest in pharmacy education—educators, practitioners, wholesalers, and manufacturers. As might be expected, some educators had misgivings about the motives of the wholesalers and manufacturers. Rufus Lyman, editor of the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education and a member of the executive board of AACP in support of Little, challenged such thinking by noting there was as much idealism in industry as in academia.19.Lyman R.A. The editor's page.Am J Pharm Educ. 1944; 8: 242-245Google Scholar In 1949 Little was chosen the Remington medalist to recognize “his tireless efforts on behalf of pharmacy education, for his sane and intelligent attitude toward pharmacy in all its subdivisions, for his excellent handling of students who have come under his supervision…and for his great interest in the general welfare of pharmacy.”3.Lyman R.A. Editorial.Am J Pharm Educ. 1949; 13: 552Google Scholar In his address, “The Wide Walls of Pharmacy,” Little spoke of the contributions and challenges of pharmacy in all its branches—practice, education, manufacturing, and wholesaling. After noting that no part of pharmacy could be stronger than the weakest link, he concluded, “May the walls of our house of pharmacy be built wide and strong. Wide enough to include all that is best from all sectors of our diversified professions, strong enough to resist undermining influences which beset it. From such a structure may we go forward together with a determination and a singleness of purpose which will result in accomplishments greater than ever before achieved, and which will make pharmacy's future worthy of its past.”20.Little E. The wide walls of pharmacy.in: Griffenhagen G.B. Bowles G.C. Penna R.P. Worthen D.B. Reflections on pharmacy by the Remington medalists 1919-2003. American Pharmacists Association, Washington, D.C2004: 156-159Google Scholar Despite not being educated as a pharmacist, Ernest Little was considered by others to be one. In 1945 Temple University bestowed an honorary doctor of laws on him, an event lauded by Rufus Lyman as not only honoring the man but also the progress of pharmaceutical education.21.Lyman R.A. The editor's page.Am J Pharm Educ. 1945; 9: 423-424Google Scholar Little also received an honorary doctor of science from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science and a doctor of pharmacy from Rutgers. The New Jersey Pharmaceutical Association named him the first recipient of the Oscar Singer Medal for his individual achievement in the field of organized pharmaceutical activities.22.Cowen D.L. The New Jersey Pharmaceutical Association, 1870-1970.Trenton: New Jersey Pharmaceutical Association;. 1970; 106Google Scholar He received the Remington Medal for his positive activism in the formation of the partnership necessary to bring the AFPE into existence. Today the programs that he helped establish through his work with all professional and trade organizations continue to support students, faculty, and colleges of pharmacy.