FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 30, 2007
Contact: Joshua Hollis
(662) 329-7119

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.