2003 Honorary Degree

Gilbert S. Banker Doctor Of Science Dr. Gilbert S. Banker has received recognition for his remarkable commitment to higher education and his extraordinary contributions and leadership to the profession of pharmacy. Gilbert S. Banker Now retired and living in Iowa City, Iowa, and Naples, Fla., Dr. Banker dedicated his entire career to education at three different Big Ten universities, including nearly 33 years at Purdue. Born in Suffern, N.Y., Dr. Banker attended Union University in New York and earned his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy in 1953. He came to West Lafayette, Ind., and earned a master’s degree in 1955 and a doctorate in 1957, focusing on industrial pharmacy and pharmaceutical chemistry. Dr. Banker immediately transitioned from being a graduate teaching assistant and research foundation fellow into an assistant professor of pharmacy. He became an associate professor in 1961, full professor in 1964 and head of the Department of Industrial and Physical Pharmacy in 1967, a position he held until 1985 when he became Dean and Professor of Pharmaceutics at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Banker left Minnesota in 1992 for a similar position at the University of Iowa, where he was dean and John L. Lach Distinguished Professor of Drug Delivery until his retirement in 1999. He is now dean emeritus at Iowa’s College of Pharmacy. His career includes consulting and serving on advisory boards for 14 different companies since 1962, committee appointments and officer duties in 29 different professional organizations since 1964, and memberships in 13 different scientific, professional or fraternal societies since 1949. He has made presentations and given lectures throughout the world. Dr. Banker’s major areas of research have been in physico-chemical approaches employing polymer and colloid chemistry to the precise design and pharmacodynamic control of dosage forms. He has also done work with the chemical and physical design of new polymers for food, drug and cosmetic applications. Dr. Banker has been listed in "Who’s Who in America," "American Men of Science," "Who’s Who in American Education" and "Who’s Who in the World." He also has won many awards and honors including being named Outstanding Alumnus of the Year by Union University in 1977 and Distinguished Alumnus of the Year by Purdue in 1989. While at Purdue, Dr. Banker served on numerous committees, including the Athletic Affairs Committee for 14 years, before becoming the faculty representative to the Big Ten Conference for five years (1980-85).