FAMU Alumnus Otis Kirksey Named to American Diabetes Association® 2019 National Board of Directors

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) welcomed the 2019 Principal Officers and Board of Directors. Otis W. Kirksey, Pharm.D., director of Pharmacy Services at the Neighborhood Medical Center in Tallahassee, is among them. He has served for the past year on the ADA National Advocacy Committee. “The 12-member board is composed of forward-thinking medical, scientific, education and executive professionals, who will strategically lead and focus efforts to ensure the ADA continues to be synonymous with excellence.”

Kirksey is a Certified Diabetes Educator and board certified in Advanced Diabetes Management. He brings 25 years of experience in academia as a former professor of Pharmacy Practice at his alma mater, the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences. He retired in March of 2018. Prior to his faculty appointment Kirksey was a clinical pharmacist in Research and Information Services at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center. He served more than 11 years on the board of the Neighborhood Medical Center, a federally qualified clinic, and he is currently director of the Prince Hall Shriners’ National Diabetes Initiative. In this role, Kirksey led the organization’s effort to fulfill a 10-year, $1 million-dollar commitment to the ADA, to support research and outreach efforts in underserved communities – particularly African American and Hispanic.

More than 30 million Americans are living with diabetes. “The American Diabetes Association is the nation’s leading voluntary health organization on a mission to prevent and cure diabetes, as well as improve the lives of all people affected by the disease.”

“It’s a dream come true,” said Kirksey. “Over the last 20 years I have dedicated myself to improving the quality of life for people living with diabetes through education, compassionate care and advocacy.

“I am honored and humbled by this appointment, and I look forward to helping to advance the ADA’s mission.”

“The newest members of ADA’s National Board of Directors are respected and trusted leaders within their professions, and we are thankful they are willing to share their time and energy to help us bend the curve on the diabetes epidemic,” said Tracey D. Brown, chief executive officer of the ADA.