A Night of Celebration: School of Nursing honors accomplished alumni, thanks generous donors

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Published:
October 29, 2018

On Thursday, Oct. 11, Dean Alexa Stuifbergen and members of The University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing Advisory Council hosted a gala to recognize the many outstanding achievements of two alumni at a dinner in Austin, Texas. The event was also an opportunity to say thank you to generous donors who recently provided funding to ensure that the school continues to provide excellence in nursing education, research and service.


 

Dean Alexa Stuifbergen presents Dr. Kathy Baker the Distinguished Alumni award.

Distinguished Alumni Award

Kathy A. Baker, PhD, RN, ACNS-BC, FAAN

Dr. Baker has made a significant and sustained impact in nursing education, scholarship and clinical practice. She is currently an associate professor, director of Nursing Research and Scholarship, and deputy director at the Center for Translational Research, a Joanna Briggs Institute Center of Excellence, at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas.

Dr. Baker received her doctoral degree in 2003 from the UT Austin School of Nursing, a Master of Science in Nursing from Texas Woman’s University in Dallas in 1988, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Baylor University in 1981.

Her research has focused on quality of life among liver transplant recipients and through her work she has revealed the importance of physiologic, psychological, social, spiritual, family, and socioeconomic aspects of quality of life for liver transplant recipients.

She has conducted a large mixed methods multi-site study of quality of life, self-transcendence, illness distress and fatigue in liver recipients. Her findings emphasized the need to minimize post-transplant symptoms, such as fatigue and illness distress, while enhancing self-transcendence in order to enrich the transplant recipient’s quality of life experience.

As a follow up, Dr. Baker and a colleague extended this program of research exploring the experiences for cancer survivors with complex diagnoses. Her commitment to this field has influenced the quality and safety of patients receiving care at the national and international level.

Dr. Baker servedfrom 1995 to 1996 as president of the Certification Board of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates. Since 1999, she has served as editor of the peer-reviewed journal, Gastroenterology Nursing. This journal informs nurses world-wide of the latest developments in research, evidenced based practice techniques, equipment, diagnostics and therapy.

Dr. Baker was appointed by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing to represent Clinical Nurse Specialists on the APRN Competency Work Group and to the Texas Board of Nursing Advanced Practice Nursing Advisory Committee.

Her significant contributions to the Joanna Briggs Institute, an international organization promoting and supporting the synthesis, transfer, and usage of evidence-based practice to improve health care outcomes globally, have allowed her to consult with numerous institutions to recruit, train, and support nurse scholars in their contributions to gastroenterology practice.

Dr. Baker was recognized as the Outstanding Doctoral Graduate at the UT Austin School of Nursing in 2003 and was inducted as a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.


 

Dean Alexa Stuifbergen presents Audrey Decherd the Rising Star award.

Rising Star Alumni Award

Audrey M. Decherd, MSN, RN, CCRN

In 2009, Audrey received a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt in Spanish linguistics but became interested in nursing after going through a traumatic event with a loved one. While walking in her neighborhood on a Saturday morning, her mother was struck by a car and suffered a traumatic brain injury. Audrey was often by her bedside during the three months her mother was in intensive care. It would be another five months before her mother finally came home.

“Everything the nurses and doctors said, I soaked up like a sponge and wanted to know more. Something ignited inside me, and I knew that this is where I belonged,” she said.

Audrey enrolled in the Alternate Entry Master’s in Nursing program and today, she is a nurse at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas in the neonatal ICU.

Prior to that, she was a certified CCRN staff nurse in Baylor University Medical Center’s neurosciences Intensive Care Unit, where, in addition to other duties, she coached many newly hired graduate nurses and precepted student nurses from schools of nursing across North Texas.

Audrey is a member of Leadership Dallas, a professional development program for civic-minded young professionals in the Dallas area. She serves on the board of directors of Educational First Steps, an organization that helps existing North Texas childcare centers in at-risk neighborhoods achieve national accreditation, and The Decherd Foundation, her family’s foundation that supports organizations primarily in the fields of education, medicine and urban planning. Audrey is also a member of the School of Nursing Advisory Council.


Kimberly and Jeffrey Chapman Endowed Presidential Fellowship in Nursing

Kim received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the School of Nursing in 1985 and a Master of Science in Nursing from Drake University in 1999. She and her husband, Jeff, created this fellowship to be a permanent endowment, funds from which shall be used to provide fellowships to graduate students in the School of Nursing.

Gloria Anne De Leon Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Nursing

Gloria obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from UT Austin and a Master of Science in Nursing from Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas. Upon recognizing a need to assist nurses who had left and later wanted to re-enter practice, Gloria launched Nurse Re-Entry Education: Whole Health Services. She passed away shortly afterwards in November 2012. This scholarship was created in Gloria’s memory by her brother Hector De Leon and his wife, Arleigh, and will support undergraduate students.

Jeanne L. and Michael L. Klein Forty Acres Scholarship

Jeanne received a Bachelor of Science in Special Education and has served as a member of the Blanton Museum Council, is a life member of the College of Education Foundation Advisory Council and a member of the Harry Ransom Center Advisory Council. Mickey received his Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering and a Bachelor of Laws. He is chair of the Blanton Museum Council and an associate member of the McDonald Observatory and was honored by the Texas Exes in 2017 with the Distinguished Alumnus Award.

The Forty Acres Scholars Program is the premier full-ride, merit-based scholarship for The University of Texas at Austin. Administered by the Texas Exes, it offers a rich college experience that provides academic, leadership, and cultural opportunities within an intimate cohort of fellow scholars. Jeanne and Mickey’s scholarship is the first Forty Acres Scholarship dedicated specifically to support a nursing student.

Laurie Sunderman Excellence Fund in Multiple Sclerosis Research

Andrew Sunderman is a member of the School of Nursing Advisory Council, and he and Laurie are strong supporters of the overall mission of the school and the unique focus of nursing research. They have supported many charitable organizations pursuing cures for multiple sclerosis. Their generous gift will support the robust program of research in multiple sclerosis at the School of Nursing and will have a long-term impact on improving the lives of individuals with MS.

The evening also included the announcement that the School of Nursing has reached the goal of raising $300,000 through various gifts and pledges for the Billye J. Brown Professorship in Nursing Leadership. The assistance of faculty member Dr. Lynn Rew and council member Dr. Ferne Kyba in gathering support for the professorship was acknowledged along with Kim and Jeff Chapman’s generous gift that closed the funding gap. This endowment honoring Dean Emerita Brown, the first dean of the UT Austin School of Nursing, was established by a lead gift from Luci Baines Johnson in 2017. Funds will support senior faculty recruitment, retention and support.

View the list of past Distinguished Alumni and Rising Star Alumni Recipients

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