The ninth annual Barbara Donaho Distinguished Leadership in Learning Awards Ceremony was held at the ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ Student Center Ballroom on March 21. ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍâs College of Nursing hosted the event with nearly 200 people in attendance, including award recipients, faculty, staff and guests. This yearâs recipients were registered nurses and physicians from the Kent area who work in a variety of capacities â from staff nurses to advanced practice nurses, as well as physicians. Known as âpreceptors,â these dedicated nursing professionals were recognized for generously donating their time to help mentor, train and develop ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍâs nursing students in clinical settings.
Started in 2007, the award is named after Barbara A. Donaho, a long-time friend and supporter of ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ and the College of Nursing.
âThis year, we honored 31 preceptors from 24 hospitals, clinics, health networks, private medical practices and public health agencies in Northeast Ohio,â Donaho said. âOver the past nine years, weâre proud to have awarded a total of 287 nurses and physicians for their significant contributions.â
Donahoâs distinguished career includes roles as a director of nursing, senior vice president of patient services and most recently as president and CEO of St. Anthonyâs Health Care Center in St. Petersburg, Florida. She also holds an honorary doctorate of law degree from ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ.
âActing as a preceptor is no easy task,â said Barbara Broome, dean of ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍâs College of Nursing. âIt is a huge responsibility and critically important to the development of our future nurses. We are thankful for all of the area healthcare organizations that make it possible for their exceptional nurses to mentor our nursing students. Itâs just one of the advantages ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ nursing students have, which helps set them apart, and of course, we are grateful to Barbara Donaho for her generosity, vision and continuing support.â
âBoth of my preceptors were honored to receive recognition for their outstanding work,â said Lynda Urdzik, ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ College of Nursing masterâs student and Twinsburg, Ohio, native. âI am grateful that Barbara Donaho and ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ's College of Nursing take time to recognize these wonderful, hard-working preceptors.â
Additional sponsors of this yearâs event included University Hospitals, Case Medical Center, Cleveland Clinic, Robinson Memorial Hospital, Summa Health System, Akron General, Western Reserve, Aultman Hospital and University Hospitals Geauga Medical Center.
¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍâs College of Nursing
In existence for nearly 50 years, the College of Nursing at ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ is one of the largest and most comprehensive nursing programs in the nation. As part of ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍâs eight-campus system, the college provides more than 2,000 nursing students courses of study at the baccalaureate, master's and doctoral levels. The college is a recipient of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Innovations in Professional Nursing Education Award and was named by the National League of Nursing as a Center of Excellence in Nursing Education in 2013. In addition, the collegeâs BSN program is Ohioâs only five-time recipient of scholarship funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation New Careers in Nursing Scholarship Program (NCIN). To learn more about nursing programs at ¶¶MÅ®ÆÍ, visit www.kent.edu/nursing.
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Media Contacts:
Sharon Cunningham, scunni24@kent.edu, 330-672-8747
Eric Mansfield, emansfie@kent.edu, 330-673-2797