Pharmacy Perspectives - Summer/Fall 2017 - 10

Graduation :

H O R S E
S E N S E

ots of girls love horses and have a special bond with
all things equestrian. For some it can be a phase.
But for Jillian Bishop it was her life's blood and
vocation. "It was my passion," says Bishop.
After receiving a bachelor's degree in Animal
Sciences from Kansas State University, she began
a career in horse breeding. First at a big breeding ranch in Valley
View, Texas. Then, she was accepted to Colorado State University's
breeding farm internship program. Halfway through the one-year
internship, her boss offered her a full-time assistant manager position of the embryo transfer program. "It was exciting to be at one
of the most well-known academic institutions for equine sciences
in the country," says Bishop. Bishop was responsible for the care of
the embryo donors, outreach, and laboratory coordination.

But in 2011, CSU's equine program
suffered a devastating loss when the
breeding facility burned down. "We
were really fortunate that no humans or
horses were hurt. But we lost millions
of dollars in semen research, embryos
and high tech equipment. And took a
major hit to the school's reputation."
Despite the loss, the department
moved forward and even was able to
host an international equine reproductive symposium the same week
as the fire. "It was challenging, but it
gave us a moral boost that we could
still function and do things well, even
though we suffered a major setback."
The fire was a turning point for
Bishop.
"Even before the fire, I was getting
a little ... burned out," recalls Bishop.
Seven day work-weeks, coupled with
getting banged up by the horses, helped
Bishop re-evaluate her life. "Mainly I
felt I could do more and give more.
There wasn't a lot of growth potential.
And I felt I was already at the top of my
field. So, I quickly figured out I needed
to do something else."
She thought about becoming a
veterinarian. After all, she had a lot of

Jillian Bishop competing and views of
CSU's equine facilities after the devastating fire of 2011.
An excited Jillian Bishop listens
raptly to faculty member Sarah Scoular's
commencement address.

CU Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

We were really
fortunate that no
humans or horses
were hurt. But we
lost millions of
dollars in semen
research, embryos
and high tech
equipment. And
took a major hit
to the school's
reputation.
- JILLIAN BISHOP

the coursework completed and had
the prerequisite love of animals, but
"somehow that never felt right." So,
she began researching other careers
and kept coming back to pharmacy.
"I never thought of it before, but it
made sense. I was comfortable with
medicines and dealt with them a lot
in my job at the breeding facility," says
Bishop. And, it didn't hurt that her
mother was a physical therapist and her
father was on the hospital board, so she
was familiar with medical terminology.
She needed a couple of pre-requisites, so she took a few courses and
then applied to four pharmacy schools
and was accepted by all. "Ultimately
I chose CU. It's a great school with a
great reputation," says Bishop.
So, in 2012 she started the PharmD
program. And for a while, things were
going well, until the spring of her P-2
year when she experienced a health
crisis. For years she had battled migraines, but as that semester progressed
the migraines worsened until she was

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pharmacy Perspectives - Summer/Fall 2017