A Policy Creates Opportunity for Student Financial Support
As a young MCPHS pharmacy student, Jeffrey T. Moss BSP ’75 had less of a vision about his future career and, more so, “a very clear fear of not succeeding at school. “We all shared similar classes, apprehensions, and concerns.” Although the unpopular Vietnam War was winding down during Moss’s five years of study, nearly 145,000 young men nationwide received draft notices. Despite initially being “army bound” at Norwich University (after also being accepted at MCPHS), he departed Norwich and re-applied to MCPHS, gaining admission to the Class of 1975. Like many classmates, he carpooled every day and shared costs for five years with three buddies from his hometown of Reading, MA. He also worked continuously throughout his five years at MCPHS, initially as a member of an Ironworkers Union in Manhattan followed by employment at company-owned EXXON service stations, saving enough to pay for his undergraduate and future graduate school expenses. He reflects, “I am very grateful for the second chance that MCPHS gave me to succeed.”
Now Dr. Moss will help to give future MCPHS students their own chances to succeed. In a generous expression of gratitude for his alma mater, he has directed portions of future proceeds from an unneeded life insurance policy to a newly created endowment scholarship fund at MCPHS (Jeffrey T. Moss Endowed Scholarship Fund at MCPHS University), as well as to support two other meaningful charitable organizations. He remarks, “I can’t think of a better way to use the value of the policy at a time in the future when I no longer need it. All my other needs have been well taken care of.”
Moss devoted more than 30 years to a career in pharmacy that included faculty positions in pharmacy and medical schools, VA Hospitals, for-profit hospitals, and finally two gratifying decades of employment in the Field Medical Department of Bristol Myers Squibb. And if this were not enough, he successfully obtained his commission as a pharmacy officer shortly after graduate school, and went on to complete 28 years of service, initially as a Medical Service Corps officer, then later as a senior instructor at the Command and General Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth Kansas. Beginning in 1991, his military began to change dramatically following Operation Desert Storm. However, once 9/11 occurred, “it changed everything for those of us in the reserves.” Moss observes, “I was essentially on active duty continuously fulfilling missions throughout the United States and Europe from 2001 until I retired only five years ago.”
Well…not retired for long. After a year spent puttering around his San Antonio home, Dr. Moss followed the encouragement of his wife Cynthia and re-entered academia to pursue a degree in culinary arts. At 62 years of age, he graduated number one in his class from The International Culinary School at the Art Institute of San Antonio. He reflects, “I found new purpose and new use of the seemingly endless chemistry classes that I took more than forty years ago at MCP. There is an amazing amount of chemistry in cooking.” The chemistry also worked between Jeff Moss and his culinary alma mater. With the prompting of his department chairperson, Dr. Moss joined the faculty where he now serves as an adjunct faculty member.
Moss’s MCPHS education helped to clarify his professional vision and create the pathways that he followed to career opportunities in academia, healthcare, industry, and the military. “Productivity,” he says, “has always been important to me. I’m pleased to be able to help endow institutions which have had an enduring impact on my life and will directly benefit many others long into the future.”
