The dean of the University of Iowa’s College of Pharmacy spent the past week touring two-dozen pharmacies across the state, from Sioux City to Mason City to the Quad Cities. Dean Jill Kolesar (co-LESS-er) says the goal of the tour was to build relationships and get feedback to see how the college can support local pharmacies and the services they provide to Iowa’s communities.

There are only two pharmacy colleges in the state, at the U-I and at Drake University in Des Moines. The Iowa City institution sees between 80 and 120 pharmacy students graduate each year, while she says Drake graduates about 55. Kolesar says that’s far too few.

She says only about one in five newly-graduated U-I pharmacists leave the state.

A Wisconsin native, Kolesar was named dean at the U-I in July of 2024, after a stint at the University of Kentucky and 20 years on the faculty at the University of Wisconsin. She was recently named to Forbes’ 2025 “50 Over 50” list, which honors visionary women whose work is shaping industries and changing lives.
https://pharmacy.uiowa.edu/news/2025/08/dean-jill-kolesar-named-forbes-50-over-50-list