OAKWOOD, VA (APRIL 10, 2025) — Appalachian College of Pharmacy (ACP) is pleased to announce Randal “R.J.” Kirk will deliver the commencement address during ACP’s commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2025 in Garden Hall at ACP on May 3, 2025.
ACP President Mickey McGlothlin noted Kirk is “one of the most successful business people in the history of the Commonwealth of Virginia.”
Originally an attorney by training, Kirk entered the biomedical field in 1983, co-founding General Injectables and Vaccines (GIV) in Bastian, VA. GIV rapidly became the largest independent marketer and distributor of pharmaceutics and biologics to the U.S. office physician marketplace and served as a springboard for Kirk’s entry into pharmaceutical manufacturing and ultimately, into research and development.
“We look forward to welcoming Mr. Kirk onto our Oakwood campus as our commencement speaker this year,” said ACP Provost and Dean Susan Mayhew. “Mr. Kirk is one of biotech’s foremost individual investors and executives, having brought a number of successful drugs to market through his leadership roles at King Pharmaceuticals, Scios, New River Pharmaceuticals, Clinical Data and Halozyme. We look forward to the unique perspectives Mr. Kirk will share with us from his career experiences not only in pharmaceutical manufacturing, but also in the areas of research and development.”
For more than a decade, Kirk was CEO of Intrexon, a company focused on advancing genetic and biological engineering to benefit the health and well-being of humans, animals and the environment.
In early 2020, Kirk stepped down from his post with Intrexon to become the executive chairman of Precigen, the former healthcare arm of Intrexon. Precigen is dedicated to developing the next generation of gene and cell therapies targeting the most urgent and intractable diseases in immuno-oncology, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases.
Kirk also owns a controlling business interest in Okanagan Specialty Fruits, grower of the groundbreaking Arctic Apple and Oxitec LTD, the leading developer of biological solutions to control pests that transmit disease, destroy crops and harm livestock.
Kirk has been an Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine board member since May 2015 and sat on the board of visitors of Radford University from 2003 to 2009. Additionally, he served on the University of Virginia Board of Visitors from 2009 to 2012; the Virginia Advisory Council on Revenue Estimates from 2006 to 2012; and the Governor’s Economic Development and Jobs Creation Commission from 2010 to 2012.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in business from Radford University and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia.
ABOUT THE APPALACHIAN COLLEGE OF PHARMACY: The Appalachian College of Pharmacy is the only three-year Doctor of Pharmacy program in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Founded in 2003, the college accepted its first students in 2005. It is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Its mission is to cultivate a learning community committed to education, community outreach and the professional development of pharmacists. Its graduate pharmacists are now practicing throughout the United States.
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