Once the student society is formed, a faculty member will need to be selected as the SSHP Faculty Advisor. An important way to ensure future growth and development of the SSHP is to select leaders and officers. The society's initial growth will be dependent upon the strength and enthusiasm of its officers, but long-term growth also relies on the dedication of individual members, who may serve on SSHP committees.
The SSHP Faculty Advisor and Co-advisor have important roles. The advisors provide guidance and support to the ASHP Student Liaison and the student society. Ideally, ASHP affiliates and the faculty advisors share information and coordinate joint efforts. To update the contact information for the SSHP Faculty Advisor or Co-Advisor on your campus, please email students@ashp.org. 
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ASHP recommend to Deans that the selection of the advisors should be based upon the following criteria:
- Active member of ASHP and State Affiliate organization;
- Preferably a full-time pharmacy practice faculty member at the school of pharmacy with responsibility for teaching hospital/health-system and/or clinical pharmacy practice courses and/or clerkships;
- Works well with students;
- Easily accessible to students/student leaders (i.e. Spends a majority of time at the school or college of pharmacy and is reasonably accessible to students);
- Willing to interacting with the ASHP Student Liaison and co-advisors as well as advisors at other schools to exchange ideas and program suggestions for improving student activities;
- Expressed interest in promoting health-system pharmacy practice, participation and knowledge of pharmacy practice residency training programs, and involvement in hospital/health-system;
- Effective advocate for the formation of a student society of health-system pharmacy at the school of pharmacy (or working to support/strengthen an existing student society);
- Willing to serve as an interface between the Student Society and the school administration and other faculty;
- Willing to attend and participate in the business meetings of the Executive Committee and the regularly scheduled meetings of the entire membership as well as state and national meetings as appropriate (i.e. SSHP Faculty Advisors Workshop at ASHP Summer or Midyear meetings);
- Willing to discuss with students the services and benefits available through membership in the ASHP Pharmacy Student Forum and the state society of health-system pharmacists, increasing students' awareness and fostering interest in becoming more involved in these organizations.
Because some schools have multiple campuses, there may be one primary and co-advisor assigned to each campus. In this case, the criteria and duties are the same. ASHP communicates with all advisors and co-advisors, and all campuses should work together to achieve the organization's objectives.
ASHP will communicate directly with one student representative from each school/campus with a monthly update. This student will be your "ASHP Student Liaison" and will be responsible for keeping your other SSHP officers and members informed about important dates, deadlines and opportunities from ASHP. All ASHP student members are eligible to serve as a student liaison. Many schools choose to assign their SSHP President to this role while others appoint or elect another student. The choice is yours but we do ask that you select a student with a current active membership in ASHP. The deadline for appointments of liaisons is September 1 of each year.
The responsibilities of the ASHP Student Liaison are:
- Keep SSHP Faculty Advisor informed of student needs for information concerning health-system pharmacy related issues;
- Assist the Faculty Advisor in communications with SSHP and ASHP;
- Assist in the dissemination of information regarding programming and involvement in the ASHP Pharmacy Student Forum to the student society leaders and members.
Once the student society is formed, an important way to ensure future growth and development is to select leaders and officers. The society's initial growth and development will be dependent upon the strength, enthusiasm, and dedication of its officers. The "Model Governing Documents" provide information about student society officers and their responsibilities. Of course, the student society may add or delete officer positions as found in this model, or change the responsibilities of the officers, consistent with the student society's needs. More
General responsibilities of the student society officers include:
- Management of the general affairs and finances of the student society;
- Setting priorities, goals, and objectives for the student society;
- Working with the student society committees to implement programs and activities;
- Being responsible to the members who elected them to their offices;
- Providing opportunities for member participation and involvement;
- Providing information to students on issues related to health-system pharmacy practice and related opportunities;
- Representing the student society members to the state society and the ASHP Pharmacy Student Forum.
The election of officers is one mechanism for the members to have input into the operation of the student society. A nominations committee should be appointed by the student society president at the appropriate time during the school year to slate candidates for each of the student society's elected officers. Each potential candidate should submit a brief biography, summary of professional activities, and goals for the office he or she is seeking. It is the responsibility of the nominations committee to interview and evaluate the candidates, and place before the electorate the opportunity to choose between candidates. The student society will need to decide if the nominations committee should be charged with slating all qualified candidates, at least two qualified candidates, or only two qualified candidates.
If the student society membership is small, a nominations committee may become a cumbersome process. In this case, consider having interested student society members nominate themselves (or others) for an office, and hold the elections based on these nominations. Remember to notify all student society members about this meeting well in advance. The student society's faculty advisor can be very helpful in developing an open, fair nominations and elections process for the student society.
A substantial amount of the business of any organization is conducted through member participation and involvement in the committee structure. There are two types of committees – standing and special (or ad hoc). More
- Standing committees are permanent committees, established to monitor and/or implement an ongoing activity or program.
- Special (or ad hoc) committees are developed to address a unique or one-time situation or problem; once its business is finished, it usually dissolves.
Committees may be difficult to form at the initiation of the student society because the group has just begun to recruit members and become active. More committees will form as the student society grows. Each student society will need to determine its own committee structure, consistent with its needs, growth and objectives. The best advice is to keep it simple! Some of the committees the student society may consider forming include:
Standing Committees
Membership Committee - Responsible for the development and implementation of membership recruitment and retention programs and new member services; should include membership recruitment for the student society, the state affiliate, and the ASHP Pharmacy Student Forum.
Programming Committee - Responsible for the development of educational programs, social programs and other activities for society members (e.g., identifying speakers, coordinating the professional development project).
Finance Committee - Responsible for developing a budget, monitoring student society finances, and planning and sponsoring fundraising activities. The student society treasurer typically serves as chairperson, and the state society treasurer (and/or faculty advisor) as an ex-officio member.
Publicity/Communications Committee - Responsible for the publication of a student society newsletter or other communications vehicle(s) and publicizing student society programs, activities, and events to members and nonmembers. The secretary of the student society typically chairs this committee.
Special (Ad hoc) Committees
Constitution and Bylaws Committee - The student society may periodically need to review the governing documents to determine if they still meet the current needs of the student society and allow for expansion and growth. An executive committee member should be a member of this committee, and a member of the board of directors of the state society may be included.
Nominations Committee - Should be appointed annually to conduct the slating and election of officers for the student society. The appointment of a graduating member of the executive committee to the nominations committee should be considered.
When necessary, the student society may periodically create or dissolve committees. It is recommended that the student society vice-president serve as an ex-officio member of any committee on which there is not an executive committee member designated as either chairperson or ex-officio member. The primary reason for the appointment of an executive committee member to each committee is to provide an important information link between the officers and the committees.
The student society is cautioned against creating "too many" committees. Committees are an effective mechanism for conducting the student society business and activities; however, they can become an impediment to action and implementation if they become too large or if too many exist.