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ASU Nursing Prof Gets National Training Spot

July 27, 2012

Dr. Susan Wilkinson of the Angelo State University nursing faculty has been chosen by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) for the inaugural class of nursing deans and senior faculty leaders to participate in the new AACN-Wharton Executive Leadership Program.

Head of ASU’s Department of Nursing and Rehabilitation Sciences and an 18-year faculty member, Wilkinson is one of only 37 nurse educators nationwide chosen for the 2012 cohort of the new program, which will take place Aug. 14-17 at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.  The program is designed to provide world-class leadership enrichment exclusively for top academic leaders in nursing, and is being co-sponsored by the Jonas Center for Nursing Excellence in New York. 

“Fortified with a new layer of leadership expertise, those completing the program will be well-prepared to make a lasting impact on how nurses are educated and how they practice,” said AACN President Jane Kirschling.  “Though many executive leadership programs are available at top schools like Wharton, none focus exclusively on the needs of nursing deans.  AACN is hopeful that this innovative program will help to amplify nursing’s voice in national conversations about health care reform and enhancing patient care.” 

The timing of Wilkinson’s selection for the leadership program is also fortuitous for the ASU nursing program. 

“I am so very proud of Dr. Wilkinson for being selected for this prestigious program,” said Dr. Leslie Mayrand, dean of the ASU College of Health and Human Services.  “Her participation will help ASU’s nursing program become competitive and move forward strategically as a leading program in the state.  This is especially important since we are in a major transition as we phase out our associate degree program and implement our generic nursing baccalaureate program.” 

AACN is the national voice for university and four-year college education programs in nursing, representing more than 700 member schools of nursing at public and private institutions nationwide.  More information on AACN is available online at www.aacn.nche.edu. 

The Wharton School was founded in 1881 as the first U.S. collegiate business school, and is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education.  More information is available online at www.wharton.upenn.edu/.