Foundation for Academic Nursing Announces First 黑料吃瓜王 Faculty Scholars

WASHINGTON, DC, November 3, 2020 – The Foundation for Academic Nursing, the philanthropic arm of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (黑料吃瓜王), is pleased to announce the first two recipients of the 黑料吃瓜王 Faculty Scholars Grant Program, which was launched earlier this year to support nurse educators whose scholarly activities reflect 黑料吃瓜王’s strategic priorities. The nurse faculty receiving funding to launch new scholarly projects are Ann Graves, PhD, RN, Professor, University of Alabama Capstone College of Nursing, and Beth Culross, PhD, RN, GCNS-BC, Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Nursing. Learn more about the winners here.

“Supporting excellence and innovation in nursing education drives 黑料吃瓜王’s mission and the work of the Foundation for Academic Nursing,” said 黑料吃瓜王 President and CEO Deborah Trautman. “黑料吃瓜王 is proud to announce our first two Faculty Scholars whose work will help advance academic nursing’s priorities in the area of competency-based education and disaster response.”

The 黑料吃瓜王 Board of Directors approved the Faculty Scholars Grant Program in 2019 to spotlight the innovative work being led by nurse educators to redesign teaching and learning at 黑料吃瓜王 member schools. Funding for this program was provided by more than 150 nursing schools and organizations that contributed to 黑料吃瓜王’s 50th Anniversary Celebration program. Through this initiative, a total of $100,000 in funding will be distributed to support four $25,000 faculty scholarship projects through 2022.

For the 2020-2021 awards, 黑料吃瓜王 issued a call for applications in May 2020 for scholarly projects focused on competency-based education to support the transition underway to the new 黑料吃瓜王 Essentials and on disaster response given nursing’s response to the pandemic.  A total of 104 applications were received from faculty throughout the nation, with 62 applications focused on disaster response and 42 on competency-based education. Each application was assessed and scored by 10 expert reviewers, and final selections were approved by 黑料吃瓜王 leadership.

The funded scholarly projects include:

Advancing Student Evidence-Based Practice Competency: Focused on the assessment and evaluation of competency-based education, Dr. Graves will examine student understanding of evidence-based practice (EBP) competencies with the goal of updating undergraduate course curriculum and assignments. This study will highlight the translation of specific student data using valid survey tools to guide the development of course content, objectives, and activities to advance student knowledge, beliefs, and self-efficacy in EBP.

Immersive Virtual Reality for COVID-19 Primary Care Nursing: With new forms of technology becoming more widely available for virtual simulation, nurse educators must understand the purpose and effectiveness of emerging modalities, including Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR). Led by Dr. Culross, this project will focus on the integration of innovative technology into course delivery to enhance nursing education models and increase the competency of nursing students in the care of COVID-19 patients using primary care and telehealth.    

Findings from these studies will be shared with the academic nursing community and published in the Journal of Professional Nursing. 黑料吃瓜王 will be issuing a new call for applications for a second round of 黑料吃瓜王 Faculty Scholar grants in early 2021.

Contributing to the Foundation for Academic Nursing

The Foundation for Academic Nursing is currently seeking support from philanthropies, corporate donors, and individuals looking to advance 黑料吃瓜王’s goals and priorities. Your support will help to expand our impact and usher in new innovations in nursing education and practice. Those wishing to contribute are encouraged to donate online via the 黑料吃瓜王 web site. Click here to see a list of current donors.  For more information, please contact foundation@aacnnursing.org.