Gary M. Pollack, PhD
Dr. Pollack is a professor and Dean of the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at University
at Buffalo. He received his undergraduate degrees in chemistry and psychology from Knox College
(Galesburg, IL), and his PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University at Buffalo. He spent nearly
26 years on faculty in the School of Pharmacy, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he
also was a Division Chair and the school’s first Vice Dean. Dr. Pollack subsequently served as Dean of
Pharmacy at both Washington State University and the University of Toledo prior to coming home to
Buffalo. In August 2021, he became the 12th dean of UB’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical
Sciences.
Dean, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University at Buffalo
Dr. Pollack has taught a wide range of subjects in both the professional and graduate curricula, with an
emphasis on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics.
He was the founding director of North Carolina’s Center for Instructional Innovation in Pharmacy, has led changes in curricular delivery approaches in each of the institutions he has served and has published in the area of teaching and learning. Dr. Pollack also has been a research mentor for students pursuing professional and graduate
degrees, as well as postdoctoral scholars.
Dr. Pollack’s research has focused on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of drugs and
toxicants in the central nervous system. His research group has made fundamental contributions to
understanding the role of P-glycoprotein in limiting drug penetration into the brain and in modulating
pharmacologic response, and to defining the mechanisms and dynamics underlying the development of
morphine tolerance. Dr. Pollack is a fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of
Science and the American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
