To:        College of Nursing and Speech-Language Pathology

From:    Sheila Adams



It's my pleasure to announce that Dr. Tammie McCoy has been appointed to 
the position of BSN Program Director effective July 1, 2007.  As you 
know Dr. Linda Cox, current BSN Program Director, will be retiring in 
June 2007 after twenty years of service to Mississippi Unviersity for 
Women.   Please join me in congratulating Tammie on her new appointment 
and thanking Linda for having served in that position for the past 
several years.



In addition, Gayle Elliott will be joining the BSN Faculty on April 1, 
2007.   She will be introduced to everyone at the April Plenary 
Meeting.  I hope many of you will meet and welcome her prior to that time. 


Finally, it is my pleasure to announce the the Mississippi Institutions 
of Higher Learning  Board has granted Faculty Emeritus Status to Dr. 
Linda Cox and Ms. Suzanne Bennett.   Please join me in congratulating 
Linda and Suzanne on this honor.

Adams and MUW Department of Nursing win big at Nightingale Awards
  
COLUMBUS, Miss. – Mississippi University for Women’s Department of
Nursing and Dr. Sheila Adams, dean of the College of Nursing and
Speech-Language Pathology, were each awarded exceptional honors during
Monday night’s Nightingale Awards.
   
The Department of Nursing received the coveted honor of School of
Nursing of the Year in the state of Mississippi, while Adams was named
School of Nursing Administrator of the Year for the state.
   
Adams said, “We’re very honored to win the award. There were several
outstanding nursing schools nominated for this award. The win speaks to
the quality of the MUW nursing programs.”
   
In order to win the award, the nursing program had to possess a number
of reputable qualities, such as a pattern of excellent passage rates on
the NCLEX-RN Exam, excellent accreditation status, outstanding student
and alumni accomplishments, outstanding innovations in education and
teaching and significant contributions to health care and to the nursing
profession.
   
Regarding her own win, Adams was initially without words. “I don’t know
what to say,” she said, adding that it was an honor simply to be
included with the “prestigious group of candidates” nominated.
   
The School of Nursing Administrator of the Year Award recognizes the
registered nurse who is responsible for the administration of a school
of nursing or division within a school of nursing. The recipient of this
award will have received positive evaluations from students and
colleagues, have led the school to achieve significant accomplishments
and have demonstrated an innovative leadership style.
   
Three MUW nursing graduates also received honors during the ceremony.
   
Maria Ormon, a graduate of the BSN program, was awarded Clinical
Practice Nurse of the Year; Dottie Wilson, a graduate of the nurse
practitioner program, won Community Service Nurse of the Year; and Ray
Justice, a graduate of the BSN upgrade program, won Nurse Researcher of
the Year.
   
There were 15 award categories, with one winner chosen for each
category. There are 21 schools of nursing in the state of Mississippi.
   
The Nightingale Awards were hosted by the Mississippi Nurses Association
and the Mississippi Nurses Foundation.