Minnesota Nursing Magazine Spring/Summer 2012 - School of ...

Creating the
Future for
Nursing and
Health Care
School of Nursing welcomes the 100th
graduating class of nurses and first
BSN-to-DNP graduates
by aneisha tucker
The University of Minnesota School of Nursing celebrated another
historic milestone of leadership in nursing education at its spring
commencement ceremony. On May 11, 2012, family and friends
filed into the Mariucci Arena to watch School of Nursing graduates
walk across the stage and receive their degrees. A total of 181
degrees were conferred, the majority were the Bachelor of Science
in Nursing (BSN) degree. The school also honored students who
earned a Master of Science, major in nursing (MS) degree, Post-
Master’s certificate, Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree, and
a PhD in nursing. During the ceremony several students were
recognized with academic and leadership awards, and a Native
American Blanket Ceremony was presented in honor of MS
graduates Aleta Delorme and Nicole Lenoir.
Carolyn Wilson, president of the University of Minnesota
Medical Center-Fairview addressed the graduates encouraging
them to “…remember the importance of our field [nursing], …
recognize the power and importance of your education and our role
in redesigning care that is consistently high-quality and personcentered.”
BSN graduate being pinned by Clinical Associate Professor Elaine Darst.
The ceremony also marked the first cohort to graduate from the
school’s BSN-to-DNP program. Several of these graduates were
the first in Minnesota (and the country) to receive a DNP degree
from one of the program’s 14 specialty areas including, Midwifery
(read “Education Possible” on page 42), Anesthesia (read “Francois
Ndazigaruye” on page 12), Health Innovation and Leadership (read
“Developing Catalysts for Transformation” on page 27), Integrative
Health and Healing, and Informatics.
“The School of Nursing remains true to the vision of its creators.
We continue to educate future nurses and leaders in health care
who will change the health of people and communities. As the
health care paradigm shifts, new models of care are needed, and
we’re committed to creating them,” says Dean Connie Delaney.
“These models will rely on advanced practice nurses to provide
and coordinate primary and specialized care, nurse executives and
innovators to design/redesign health care systems, and translate
research into evidence-based clinical practice. These models
will ultimately improve the health of individuals, families, and
communities we serve.”
In 2004, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing
(AACN) recommended that the DNP replace the master’s degree
for preparation in a nursing specialty. The school was the first in
the state and one of the first in the country to offer the DNP degree
graduating its inaugural class in 2007. Since then, 138 nurses have
earned a DNP degree from the School of Nursing.
“These new graduates will join the school’s more than 12,000
alumni living around the world; a group of top-notch professionals
who are making a tremendous impact on the field and who are
playing a core role in transforming our U.S. health care system
ensuring access, safety, and quality of health care,” says Dean
Delaney. “We are so very proud to contribute to nursing and health
care the next generation of advanced practice nurses, policy makers,
scientists, executives, innovators, and faculty.”
Learn more about the academic programs at the School of Nursing
at www.nursing.umn.edu/education.
Carolyn Wilson, MBA, RN, offers words of wisdom and encouragement
to graduates.
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