Featuring Wanda T. Maldonado-Davila, BSP ’82, PharmD ‘86
Sept. 30, 2026
1 p.m.
Pharmacy Hall Room N103
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Wanda T. Maldonado-Dávila, BSP ’82, PharmD ’86, was born and raised in Puerto Rico and earned both her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy and Doctor of Pharmacy degrees from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. Upon her return to Puerto Rico, Maldonado joined the University of Puerto Rico School of Pharmacy as clinical faculty and later as chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice. Since 2010, she has served as dean and professor at the School of Pharmacy. Her research interests in academia encompass the development of professional and general skills in pharmacy students, as well as curriculum development and the clinical and therapeutic applications of anti-infective agents. While presiding over the school’s Curriculum Committee, she spearheaded the development of a competency-based Doctor of Pharmacy program, which is now in its 25th year of implementation. She has been active with several professional organizations and has served the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy in multiple capacities over the years, most recently as chair of the Council of Deans and a member of its Board of Directors. In Puerto Rico, Dr. Maldonado has advocated for legislation that promotes the advancement of the pharmacy profession, including the expansion of immunization services by pharmacists. The governor of Puerto Rico appointed Maldonado to the island’s COVID-19 Medical Task Force in 2020 to collaborate on management of the pandemic. Maldonado has actively collaborated with several international pharmacy education initiatives in the Central and South American regions and is currently president of the Iberoamerican Conference of Faculties of Pharmacy. She has also collaborated actively with the Pan American Health Organization and the International Pharmacy Federation. |
About the Francis S. Balassone Memorial Lecture
The Francis S. Balassone Memorial Lecture was established in 1976 by the Maryland Pharmacists Association and the School’s Alumni Association in memory of Francis Balassone, an alumnus of the Class of 1940, and a faculty member at the School. Balassone was executive secretary of the Maryland Board of Pharmacy and was instrumental in establishing the first School-based pharmacy student externship program in the nation.
Francis S. Balassone was born in 1915 in Thomas, West Virginia. After graduating from high school, he worked in coal mines near his home to aid his family and to further his education, which led to a successful career in pharmacy. As a result, the pharmacy profession has benefited greatly.
In 1940, he earned a BS in pharmacy from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy. He then worked for two Baltimore drug firms: the Standard Pharmaceutical Corp. and the Yager Drug Co. Balassone interrupted his pharmaceutical career to enlist as a private in the U.S. Marines, serving in World War II. He was discharged as a captain in 1946, and, during the next five years, he returned to Yager and joined the teaching staff at his alma mater.
Balassone was owner-manager of the Overlea Pharmacy in Baltimore from 1951 to 1956. Subsequently, he served for nearly two decades as commissioner and secretary-treasurer of the Maryland Board of Pharmacy; chief of the Division of Drug Control, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; and acting director of the Bureau of Consumer Health Protection.
In addition, he was a delegate of the United States Pharmacopeial Convention; delegate of the Office of Emergency Planning, Executive Office of the President; president of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy; member of the American Council on Pharmaceutical Education; president of the Central Atlantic States Association of Food and Drug Officials; and chair of the Program Area Committee on Drugs, American Public Health Association.
Balassone served as secretary and president of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy Alumni Association and later as president of the Baltimore branch of the American Pharmaceutical Association. He also was a leader in the development of state drug laws.
Under Balassone’s leadership, Maryland became the first state in the nation to replace the traditional pharmacy internship with an academic professional experience program. He collaborated with the School of Pharmacy in the development of the University of Maryland professional pharmacy program.
Awards conferred on Balassone include the School of Pharmacy Alumni Association Honored Alumnus and merit awards, and the Harvey W. Wiley Award, the nation’s highest award in the field of drugs, food, and cosmetics law.