ADCES Fellow in Focus: Sara “Mandy” Reece, PharmD, CDCES, FADCES
Mar 2, 2026, 12:19 PM
Sometimes, a single patient changes the course of a career. For Mandy Reece, PharmD, CDCES, FADCES, that moment came early on and it helped shaped a professional journey defined by service and innovation in diabetes care. Today Mandy continues to influence both the lives of people living with diabetes and the future clinicians who will care for them.
As part of our Fellows Spotlight series, we asked Dr. Reece to reflect on her journey and share advice for novice diabetes care and education specialists (DCESs) and those considering entering the specialty.
Q: Can you share your career trajectory? How did you get into the specialty, and what did growth look like for you along the way?
A:
When I graduated from pharmacy school, the concept of becoming a diabetes care and education specialist was foreign. After finishing my community pharmacy residency program, I began working for Joe Mengoni, PharmD, with the Georgia Pharmacy Association leading the disease state wellness program. As part of this work, I coordinated and served as a pharmacist coach for Patient Self-Management: Diabetes (PSM: D) Pilot Project; Mohawk Industries, Dublin, Georgia site. Through this project, I met a patient who struggled with the daily management of diabetes while balancing the demands of work and family. Although I had family members with diabetes, this particular patient brought the human aspect of diabetes front and center. The work I did with people with diabetes through this project helped plant a new seed that forever changed my career, and ultimately my life.
As with any career journey, I had twists and turns that at times directly involved diabetes and other times did not. Following my work with the Georgia Pharmacy Association, I had a stint in academia that lacked a direct link to diabetes care. But after a career shift working at District 2 Public Health in Gainesville, GA my work once again intersected with diabetes as I provided diabetes self-management education for a primary care clinic serving an indigent population and clinical gestational diabetes services in the local health department. During my time in public health, I met Cheryl Williams, RN, CDCES, an expert in clinical gestational diabetes services. She became a mentor and then a lifelong friend.
After leaving public health after three years, I turned back towards academia where I was able to continue providing clinical gestational diabetes services at the local health department.
After eight years, I once again spread my wings and flew to a new practice site with Northeast Georgia Medical Center Family Medicine GME Clinic. At this site, I deepened my knowledge and experience with insulin pump and CGM knowledge as well as teaching diabetes management and diabetes technology to family medicine residents. Even as I grew in my administrative roles at PCOM, I now serve as the Dean of the School of Pharmacy, I continued providing diabetes services with a focus on technology with the family medicine GME clinic as well as training the family medicine residents. Diabetes and serving those with diabetes was at the basis of my career and continues to be the focus to this day.
Q: Did you have a mentor, and if so, what did they teach you?
A:
Like I mentioned earlier, Cheryl Williams, RN, CDCES, was instrumental in my development as a diabetes care and education specialist. She taught me the “how-tos” of providing clinical gestational diabetes care and working with diabetes technology, including insulin pumps and CGMs. More importantly, she modeled what it looks like to bring passion, compassion, and genuine care to every patient interaction. Her love for her patients and for the specialty left a lasting impression on me.
Q: What advice would you offer to those considering entering the specialty?
A:
Take the leap of faith into this specialty. Diabetes care and education will take you to wonderful places, teach you invaluable life lessons, connect you with people who share your passion, and bring tremendous joy through service to others. Remember, you only need to take the first step. The rest will come in time.