Pacira Pharmaceuticals CEO to Speak at ACPHS's Commencement

Press Release

David Stack, chairman and CEO of Pacira Pharmaceuticals Inc, will be the speaker at Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences’ (ACPHS) 136th commencement ceremony.

Greg Dewey, PhD, president of college of pharmacy, also announced that the college will present honorary degrees to Larry Doud, CEO of Rochester Drug Cooperative, and Bob Paeglow, MD, physician and founder of the Koinonia Primary Care clinic in the West Hill neighborhood of Albany. Dr. Paeglow and Doud have provided invaluable support in the development of ACPHS’s student operated pharmacies.

This year’s commencement is notable in that it is the first time the college’s Albany and Vermont campuses will graduate in a joint ceremony. Commencement exercises will take place Saturday, May 14 at 1 PM at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.

In addition to his role with Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Stack is also a managing director at MPM Capital, a venture capital firm focused on investing in early stage life sciences companies. Pacira is an MPM portfolio company.

Stack joined Pacira to lead a restructuring of the company in 2007. He has operated as CEO for the past 8 years. Since his appointment, he has shepherded several therapeutics through clinical development and FDA approval. Under his leadership, Pacira saw the successful commercial launch of the groundbreaking pain control product Exparel.

Prior to joining MPM in 2004, Stack was president, CEO, and director of The Medicines Company. He has also served as CEO of his own company (Stack Pharmaceuticals), and he has worked with several other pharmaceutical companies including Innovex where he was the general manager for the Americas, and Hoffmann LaRoche, where he was the therapeutic world leader for infectious disease, virology, and oncology.

Stack is a 1976 graduate of Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

“A degree from ACPHS provides each graduate with the knowledge and versatility to pursue a wide range of career paths,” President Dewey said. “Few people exemplify this ideal better than David, who has drawn from his background as a pharmacist and an entrepreneur to successfully lead and manage a number of innovative pharmaceutical companies.”

“I would like to thank the entire ACPHS community for the honor of serving as this year’s commencement speaker,” Stack said. “At the time of my graduation, I could not have predicted the path my career would take, but I knew that my education from ACPHS had prepared me well for the future. I hope that by sharing some of the lessons that I’ve learned along the way, I can help this year’s graduates with the pursuit of their own professional goals—regardless of where their careers may lead them.”