
Robert P. Borris
President (1997-1998)
Robert Borris completed degrees in Biology and Pharmacy prior to receiving his Ph.D. in
Pharmacognosy (1981) from the Univ. Illinois at Chicago. Following postdoctoral research at the
Univ. Zurich, he held a faculty position at Rutgers University before joining the drug discovery
program at Merck Research Laboratories, where he spent the majority of
his career. More recently he has served as Vice President for Botanical
Science at the Council for Responsible Nutrition in Washington DC.
Currently, he is Associate Dean for Research & Associate Professor at the
newly created College of Pharmacy Univ. Hawaii at Hilo, where he is
helping to establish the Pacific Basin’s first school of Pharmacy. He
attended his first ASP meeting in 1979 at Purdue University, and over the
years he has presented/co-authored a dozen or more posters and
presentations at ASP meetings. As ASP president he worked to increase the
participation of industrial scientists in the Society. Robert has enjoyed every ASP meeting he has
attended, but if he absolutely “had to single out one meeting as his favorite, it would be the
Oaxaca (2001) meeting.” Also, he has enjoyed the excellent science and spectacular social
programs at the numerous ASP meetings he has attended. (Scott Baggett)