BOARD BRIEFS News for and about the UAB School of Nursing Board of Visitors
AND THE APPLAUSE GOES TO...
Winter 2013
COVER STORY
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Another Round of Applause
FEATURES
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8
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Annual Scholarship Recognition Event Honors Donors and Recipients
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Board of Visitors’ Meetings Chart and Celebrate 2013 Success
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The No-Show Ball: An Exciting Fall Tradition
14
McCoin Scholarship Dedicated in Memory of Babies Morgan and Houston
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE 15 16 17 18
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Junior Board Member Profile Board Member Profile In Memory of BOV Member Joie Jones Message to Our Supporters and Friends
ON THE COVER:
Among School of Nursing faculty leading the charge in doctoral education (from left): Andres Azuero, PhD, Assistant Professor; Suzie Miltner, PhD, Assistant Professor; D’Ann Somerall, DNP, Assistant Professor; Gwen Childs, PhD, Assistant Professor; and Laura Wright, PhD, CRNA, Associate Professor | Photo by Caleb Chancey BOARD BRIEFS CONTRIBUTORS:
12 2 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
EDITOR Jennifer Lollar ART DIRECTOR Meredith Robinson WRITER Anita Smith WWW.UAB.EDU/NURSING
Dean Doreen C. Harper and BOV Chair Bobby Luckie
The Board of Visitors (BOV) has just completed a 2013 initiative to raise funds to endow a scholarship in doctoral education at the UAB School of Nursing. Billed as “Another Round of Applause,” this was the BOV’s 18th fundraiser to support the UAB School of Nursing. This marked the third consecutive year the BOV’s fundraising has had an Applause theme. The first two Applause-themed initiatives featured an event, an evening of performance-based entertainment. This year’s successful effort, which netted $107,325 – the most ever netted by a BOV fundraiser – did not feature an event. Instead, the 2013 approach focused on contributions from BOV members and their contacts, combined with the BOV spreading information to better inform the community about the benefits of UAB doctoral nursing education. (An example of such information is in this publication, through Page 7.) BOV Chair Robert E. “Bobby” Luckie III said BOV members can take pride in the school as it creates the Board of Visitors Endowed Scholarship in Doctoral Nursing. “The UAB School of
During its 21-year history the BOV has generated millions in scholarship dollars to attract the best and brightest students and faculty from around the country.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE WOOD
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 3
Nursing is like no other in Alabama and among the top 5 percent in the nation,” Luckie wrote in a recent letter to the BOV. In another recent communication to the BOV, he and Co-Chair Barbara O’Neal Eddleman noted that this year’s fundraiser was yet another scholarship-creating opportunity for the BOV, which during its 21-year history has generated millions in scholarship dollars to attract “the best and brightest students and faculty from around the country.” It is both fitting and timely for the BOV to support an endowed nursing scholarship at the doctoral level, explained the dean of the UAB School of Nursing, Doreen C. Harper, PhD, RN, FAAN.
“Our school has a legacy in doctoral education that spans almost 40 years,” said Harper. “High-quality doctoral education is one of the outstanding areas for which this school is known, in this country and around the world.” The dean noted that the school has star doctoral graduates who have become presidents of universities, deans and directors of nursing schools, chief nursing officers and chief executive officers of hospitals, clinics, and large health systems. She said other doctoral graduates have become nurse scientists who are researching better ways to approach health problems. On the advanced practice nursing front, she pointed to many with UAB nursing doctorates, including nurse practitioners, who in some cases are delivering care to those who otherwise would not have access. Too, she said the school has doctoral graduates spread around the world who, as nursing-school faculty members, are educating the next generation of nurse leaders. “To members of the Board of Visitors, I assure you that this endowed scholarship for UAB doctoral nursing education will be a fabulous investment,” said Harper. She said the investment’s impact will be felt from UAB throughout Alabama and the nation and onto the global stage. On a personal note to BOV members, Dean Harper expressed deep gratitude, adding, “This Board of Visitors is an integral part of our school, a Board that emerged as the very foundation for community support for this school.”
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
UAB School of Nursing faculty and doctoral graduates Deborah Kirk Walker (left) and Darnell Mompoint-Williams
4 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
The following three pages contain stories about advanced practice nurses at the UAB School of Nursing, who have their doctorates or are working toward them – all heavily involved in patient care and in teaching the nurses of tomorrow.
MICHELE H. TALLEY, MSN, ACNP-BC
Among PATH Clinic patients is 59-year-old Mary Davis of Birmingham’s West End community. After losing practitioner her job, Davis found herself faculty talks to her patients, she tells them not only what she with diabetes and high blood can do to help them with their health care, but also what they pressure but without insurcan do – such as watching their diet and taking their medicines ance. At the PATH Clinic, as directed. She compares health care to driving a car. Davis receives free checkups, insulin, and high blood pres“I tell them, ‘I’m here to guide you, to give you the sure medicine, plus guidance from a staff that includes tools you need. But you are the driver. You have got to Michele Talley. Following Talley’s advice, Davis does her take the wheel.’ ” part. She takes her medicines promptly and has lost 45 The above words are those of Michele H. Talley, pounds by improving her diet and exercising. With the MSN, ACNP-BC. She is a UAB School of Nursing indiabetes and blood pressure under control, she feels good. structor and also a doctoral student in the school, working Davis praises Talley, saying, “She’s so smart. You can tell toward her doctorate of philosophy (PhD) in nursing. As when people care. She cares, and she has a sweet spirit.” part of her faculty role, she delivers patient care at the local PATH Clinic (Providing Access to Healthcare). This clinic serves patients who have difficulty obtaining health care because of issues such as no health insurance. For Talley, working at the PATH Clinic is exciting and fulfilling for three reasons. Number one, she’s able to help patients who really need her. Number two, she’s part of a local partnership to help others. At the PATH Clinic, UAB’s nursing school and other UAB entities are partnering with a local organization, M-POWER Ministries, which since the late 1990s has been tackling poverty by providing education and health care. A 2010 M-POWER decision to expand its health services led to its partnering with the UAB School of Nursing. The PATH Clinic is located at M-POWER’s headquarters in the Birmingham community of Avondale. For Michele Talley and others working at the PATH Clinic, there’s also a third exciting opportunity. In 2012, the awarding of a federal grant made the PATH Clinic a clinical model for demonstrating how various health professions can work together to help patients. Now the PATH clinic brings together UAB health professionals to deliver integrated care. Patients receive services from nursing, medicine, dentistry, optometry, social work, mentalhealth care, nutrition, and health information management. This project’s principal investigator is the school’s Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs and Partnerships – Cynthia Selleck, PhD, RN, FNP. UAB nurse practitioner Michele Talley with PATH Clinic patient Mary Davis; photo by Rob Culpepper
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 5
Dr. Randy Moore and Noah Galloway with UAB nursing students Elijah Berry and Blair Scott; photo by Rob Culpepper
RANDY L. MOORE, DNP, RN health care for veterans is a priority for Randy L. Moore, DNP, RN. As a UAB School of Nursing faculty member, Moore teaches UAB nursing students who will care for veterans in the future. “I tell students, ‘I want you to understand what a veteran’s service to country means. I want you to let veterans and their families know you respect them and understand them as individuals,’ ” said Moore. Moore is a veteran – 20 years in the U.S. Navy. His late father, an Army helicopter pilot, received care in Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals. Moore has delivered care to veterans; he rendered front-line treatment in Iraq to injured Marines, helping get them transferred from the war zone for further care. He’s pleased about UAB nursing students’ exposure to the Birmingham VA Medical Center, with its linkages to the UAB Health System. “The cross-pollination of UAB with the VA means that veterans treated there are getting the best of both worlds,” he said. UAB nursing students benefit from UAB’s nursing school being among top schools designated by the national VA to have a VA Nursing Academy Partnership, said Moore. He stressed, too, the school’s involvement 6 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
with the VA National Quality Scholars (VAQS) Program, which provides interprofessional fellowships for nursing and medicine. He highlighted a school faculty member who retired as a colonel after 26 years in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, who also is a national consultant on quality care and safety – Patricia A. Patrician, PhD, RN, FAAN. “Part of our work is interacting with our VAQS fellows and the Birmingham VA Medical Center in addressing quality care and safety for veterans,” said Patrician. Moore believes his students benefit from the “robust, rigorous education I received while earning my doctorate in nursing practice at UAB.” He said the curriculum taught him how to look at the entire health care system and how to help patients navigate barriers to care. When Moore hears veterans talk about their health care, he listens carefully. Among those giving input is 31-year-old Noah Galloway of Alabaster, who in 2005 lost his left arm and left leg to a roadside bomb explosion in Iraq. Galloway now is a marathon participant, YMCA physical fitness specialist, and spokesman for Lakeshore Foundation’s sports, fitness, and recreation programs for those with physical disabilities. Galloway said it’s important that the UAB School of Nursing is teaching students to be sensitive to veterans’ needs. “Recently I was at the Birmingham VA Medical Center and overheard a frustrated veteran telling a nurse that he wouldn’t have transportation to meet his next VA appointment,” said Galloway. “This nurse promptly changed his appointment, made it work for him . . . I was impressed with that nurse’s composure, calmness, and compassion. It meant a lot.”
DEBORAH K. WALKER, DNP, CRNP, AOCN are well understood by Deborah K. Walker, DNP, CRNP, AOCN. At the same time, Walker also knows about treatments and treatment teams that can successfully fight cancer. UAB School of Nursing faculty member Walker participates in care for breast cancer and lymphoma patients as part of her faculty practice at UAB’s internationally renowned Comprehensive Cancer Center. As a nurse practitioner with a doctorate in nursing practice (DNP), Walker works with fellow health professionals who use the best evidence for the good of their patients. This means they carefully evaluate treatments based on evidence from research studies. “The doctorally prepared nurse practitioner can provide the patient with that extra level of quality care,” said Walker. Regarding treatments that patients receive, Walker said that she and others on treatment teams “are educated to critically evaluate the evidence that’s out there.” The experience and expertise of Walker and her colleagues were a comfort to breast cancer patient Susan Forehand of Hoover after she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011, thus following in the footsteps of her grandmother, mother, and sister in having that diagnosis. Forehand recalled all too well how, as a teenager, she lost her mother to breast cancer. With her family history of the disease, Forehand was drawn by UAB’s excellent reputation and found herself leaning on Deborah Walker for guidance in how to make the most of UAB’s powerful resources.
“Debbie was so responsive,” cluding working on clinical trials of said Forehand. “She knew how to some of the newest anti-cancer drug help me navigate the system.” treatments. And, very important to As much as cancer patient her, she has the opportunity to teach, Forehand appreciates nurse practitiohelping to educate nurses of tomorner Walker, the opposite is also true. row. She thrives on teaching cancer Seeing Susan Forehand receive the care to nursing students. “I love to care she needs is a gift to Walker, who educate nursing students,” she said. said, “I believe that Susan and I were “I love to see those ‘aha moments’ in meant to go on this journey together.” students’ eyes.” Several years ago, when Walker was planning her career as a nurse specializing in cancer care, or oncology, she selected progressive UAB as where she wanted to work because, as she noted, “UAB is on the cutting edge.” In joining the faculty at the UAB School of Nursing, Walker said she found an exciting professional home. “Being on the faculty of the UAB School of Nursing has become my dream job,” she said. Through her UAB faculty practice, Walker has an opportunity to take care of patients, such as Susan Forehand. Too, UAB nurse practitioner Dr. Deborah Walker with cancer she can participate survivor Susan Forehand; photo by Caleb Chancey in UAB research, inUAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 7
ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIP RECOGNITION PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE STRAWN
The 2013 Scholarship Recognition Luncheon was hosted by the UAB School of Nursing and BOV member Jean Tomlinson at the Mountain Brook Club. This annual event brings together UAB nursing scholarship recipients, scholarship donors, and representatives of the school’s faculty and staff. A highlight of the February 19 event was the presentation of a resolution creating another scholarship – one made possible by the late William C. “Bill” Howton, a retired insurance executive. His late wife, retired UAB Assistant Vice President and University Relations Director Gloria Goldstein Howton, was a former member of the Board of Visitors, which is among donors creating UAB nursing scholarships. 8 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
Event Honors Donors and Recipients Alice L. McCallum Endowed Nursing Scholarship Alma B. McMahon Endowed Nursing Scholarship Barbara and Emmet O’Neal Endowed Nursing Scholarship Benjamin and Roberta Russell Nursing Scholarship Board of Visitors Endowed Veterans Nursing Care Scholarship Board of Visitors Endowed Nursing Scholarship Brock Family Endowed Nursing Scholarship Carolyn Farrior Boone Endowed Nursing Scholarship Catherine S. and Lee J. Styslinger, Jr. Endowed Nursing Scholarship Delia and John Robert Endowed Nursing Scholarship Dorothy G. Sterne Nursing Scholarship Fund Dr. Charles E. Flowers, Jr. Endowed Nursing Scholarship Dr. Margaret Millsap Memorial Endowed Award in Nursing Dr. Paul W. Scokel III and Mary Lou Scokel & William A. Honeycutt and Christine R. Honeycutt Endowed Scholarship Eileen Marie Mahan Endowed Scholarship in Nursing Elizabeth Jane Harper Memorial Scholarship Dr. Elwynn “Chick” Hale Endowed Nursing Scholarship Emmet and Mary Anne O’Neal Endowed Nursing Scholarship Ethel M. and Jesse D. Smith Nursing and Allied Health Scholarship Fay B. Ireland Endowed Nursing Scholarship Florence A. Hixson Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Francis S. Falkenburg Endowed Nursing Scholarship Gladys Farmer Colvin Memorial Scholarship Fund The Hill Crest Foundation Endowed Nursing Scholarship James Coleman Lee, Sr., Endowed Nursing Scholarship Jarman F. Lowder Endowed Scholarship Jean Riley Tomlinson Endowed Nursing Scholarship Jernigan Endowed Nursing Scholarship Jo Ann Barnett Endowed Nursing Scholarship John Wilson Rodgers Endowed Memorial Scholarship Junior Board of Visitors Endowed Pediatric Nursing Scholarship
The School of Nursing Faculty and Staff Endowed Scholarship Seth Houston McCoin, Jr., and Elizabeth Morgan McCoin Endowed Scholarship in Pediatric Nursing SOS Foundation Scholarship The Student/Alumni Endowed Nursing Scholarship Thelma Walker Mitchell Endowed Nursing Scholarship Terri J. Broach Nursing Scholarship Endowment The Robert Luckie Family Endowed Nursing Scholarship Thor-Louck Endowed Nursing Scholarship Virginia Bonds Black Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Lois Drolet Luckie Endowed Nursing Scholarship
William Groce Campbell Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Mable E. Lamb Endowed Nursing Scholarship
William C. Howton Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Margaret and Bradford Kidd Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Worthington-Cargo Family Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Margaret Parks Kendrick Nursing Scholarship
Endowed Support Funds
Marie Carter Bonner Memorial Scholarship Marie L. O’Koren School of Nursing Alumni Association Scholarship Marie S. Ingalls Endowed Nursing Scholarship Martha F. Tilt Endowed Nursing Scholarship Mary G. Nash Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Endowed Fund for Undergraduate Honors in Honor of Kristen Celia and Gerald Leon Wallace, Jr. Governors Lurleen B. and George C. Wallace Memorial Fund
Sponsored Scholarships
Mary Josephine Harwell Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Comer Nursing Scholarship
Nancy Eastman Harp Oncology Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation Scholarship The School of Nursing Dean’s Scholarship
Peggy Spain McDonald Endowed Nursing Scholarship
The Violet Terrell Clark Nursing Scholarship
Rachel Z. Booth Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Walter and Anne Jenkins Nursing Scholarship
Reese Phifer, Jr. Endowed Nursing Scholarship
Planned Endowments
Rylee/Casper Endowed Nursing Scholarship School of Nursing Dean’s Merit Endowed Scholarship
Dr. and Mrs. Jack W. Trigg, Jr. Endowed Support Fund for Nursing Honors
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 9
BOARD OF VISITORS’ MEETINGS
Chart and Celebrate 2013 Success
In two Board of Visitors (BOV) meetings during 2013, the BOV first laid groundwork for a fundraising and community awareness initiative and then celebrated that initiative’s success – the most money ever netted in a BOV fundraiser during the board’s 21-year history. PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE WOOD
The March Meeting At its March 6 meeting at the UAB National Alumni Society House, led by BOV Chair Robert E. “Bobby” Luckie III, the board agreed to conduct a 2013 fundraiser that would not include an event but instead would focus on BOV members’ individualized efforts. Proceeds would establish a scholarship for UAB doctorallevel nursing education. Expressing gratitude during this meeting for the BOV’s ongoing support of the UAB School of Nursing, Dean Doreen C. Harper reported on recent school highlights. •
U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks the UAB School of Nursing’s graduate program in the top 5 percent among the nation’s nursing schools, with the school’s adult nurse practitioner program and nursing service administration program ranked Number 10, and the family nurse practitioner program ranked Number 12.
•
Between 2008-2009 and 2011-2012, the school’s volume of research, grants, and contracts increased from $3.1 million to $7.4 million.
•
Between 2005 and 2012, the number of faculty members in the school grew by 100 percent, the number of overall students increased by 200 percent, and the number of graduate students increased by 300 percent.
BOV Chair Bobby Luckie leads the October meeting
“We are busy!” the dean said with a smile. In other meeting activity, Dean Harper introduced the internationally known nurse researcher recruited to fill the school’s Marie L. O’Koren Endowed Chair. That chair honors the legacy of UAB’s second nursing dean, Dr. Marie L. O’Koren, who died December 11, 2012. The nurse researcher filling the O’Koren Chair is Marie A. Bakitas, DNSc, APRN, NP-C, AOCN, ANHPN, FAAN. Dean Harper said that, shortly before Dr. O’Koren’s death, she was able to convey to her that Dr. Bakitas’s recruitment appeared likely. Dr. Bakitas told the BOV about palliative care, the health care specialty in which she conducts research, saying, “Palliative care offers an extra layer of support for people with serious illness.” She explained the difference between palliative care and hospice. Unlike hospice, typically reserved for patients towards the very end of their lives, palliative care can be offered to a patient who is seriously sick but not near death, regardless of the patient’s age or stage of illness. 10 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
From left: Cindy Selleck, Carolyn Boone, and Donna Reddinger
The October Meeting The BOV’s second meeting was held October 2 at the UAB National Alumni Society House. It featured a celebration of BOV 2013 fundraising success, presentations by UAB School of Nursing faculty members, a sneak peek at plans for expanding the school’s building, and looking ahead toward BOV 2014 activities. Chair Bobby Luckie announced that net proceeds from the BOV’s 2013 “Another Round of Applause” letter-writing fundraiser had topped the $100,000 mark (now $107,325), ensuring the establishment of a BOV scholarship for doctoral nursing education. He hailed the success as another milestone in the BOV’s longtime support of the school. The BOV heard from two faculty members who exemplify the spirit of doctoral education at the UAB School of Nursing. Michele Talley explained how she wears two hats – as a student in the school’s PhD in Nursing program and also as a faculty member. In addition to teaching UAB nursing students, she works as a nurse practitioner in providing care to patients
Juanzetta Flowers (left) and Marie Bakitas
"We, the faculty of the UAB School of Nursing, take the importance of your generosity with sincerest gratitude." - Randy Moore
who have difficulty accessing care. (See more on Page 5.) Dr. Randy Moore, a graduate of the school’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program, told the BOV of his work in teaching UAB nursing students about veterans’ care – sharing his personal experiences in treating wounded veterans in the combat zone. (See more on Page 6.) Talley and Moore thanked the BOV for supporting the school and its faculty and students. “We, the faculty of the UAB School of Nursing, take the importance of your generosity with sincerest gratitude,” said Moore. “We take our role as excellent stewards of these gifts seriously.” When Dr. Harper came to the podium, she gave the BOV a sneak peek at architectural concept renderings for planned expansion of the School of Nursing’s building on the UAB campus. Crediting the BOV with helping to spur the school’s
tremendous growth, she said, “You have helped us grow this school … to the point we can’t fit into it.” Dr. Harper touched on the UAB Capital Campaign, explaining that the School of Nursing will play a significant role in that campaign with plans to expand its building. She said planned construction includes an addition that will attach to the existing building plus renovation of existing space. The design is anchored by a multi-story atrium that will afford abundant light and openness and showcase the school’s priorities in expanding and utilizing knowledge to benefit patients and families. The agenda concluded with setting a special meeting (February 25) to discuss the BOV’s 2014 fundraising and community-awareness initiative. Several BOV members agreed to serve on a committee that will report to that meeting with recommendations.
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 11
The No-Show Ball: an Exciting Fall Tradition PHOTOGRAPHY BY NIK LAYMAN
The 6th No-Show Ball has gone down in history as another record-breaker. This fundraising event – which brings tote-bags of tasty food and drink to the doorsteps of supporters – this year broke all past records in terms of numbers of totes sold. The 2013 event, held on November 3, resulted in the sale of 504 totes (compared to 482 last year) by its sponsoring organization, the UAB School of Nursing’s Junior Board of Visitors (JBOV). This year marked the second-in-a-row blockbuster No-Show Ball event for the JBOV. Committed to raising funds for UAB scholarships in pediatric nursing, the JBOV last year and this year has been focused on funding a scholarship in memory of brotherand-sister twin infants – the Seth Houston McCoin, Jr., and Elizabeth Morgan Endowed Scholarship in Pediatric Nursing. (Read more on Page 14.) All proceeds from last year’s No-Show Ball, this year’s event, and next year’s as well, go toward endowing the McCoin Scholarship at a $250,000 level. With this year’s event generating more than $50,000 profit, the JBOV is well on its way to the ultimate goal, with $181,163.95 raised thus far for the McCoin Scholarship. 12 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
As the young women and young men in the JBOV
year’s No-Show Ball by Chair Ashelynn Falkenburg Smith
prepare for and carry out a No-Show Ball event, they are
and Co-Chairs Kate Wood Hamilton and Sidney Wood
united by a common feeling of love and commitment
Clapp. Joining to make this year’s venture a success
that bonds them to their mission and to one another – a
were the event’s Sponsors and Partners. The Tote Part-
bond felt by every single JBOV member.
ners were Ashley Mac’s, B-Metro Magazine, Full Moon
After spreading their message to the community
Barbeque, Jim N’ Nick’s, Neighorhood Hops and Vine,
to sell the totes, JBOV members come together for a
Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Royal Cup Coffee, and
work-filled weekend to make the No-Show Ball a reality.
The Scribbler. Sponsors included The Hope and Miracles
Organized in side-by-side assembly-line style, JBOV
Project, Jean Tomlinson, Mitchell Industries, McWane,
members labor for hours to pack food and beverages
Inc., and many anonymous donors. Added to that, to
into tote bags. Then they scatter into their various ve-
comprise yet another Sponsor, was the total of individual
hicles and drive to locations near and far – to deliver the
monetary contributions given by every JBOV member in
totes directly to the doorsteps of those who supported
addition to his or her work in hosting the event.
the event. For tote recipients, that’s when the fun feast
Anyone wishing to make a donation to move the
can begin. In the comfort of their homes, they dine on
McCoin Scholarship further along can do so by contact-
No-Show Ball goodies.
ing Andrea Cofield, Director of Operations and Board
Now 23 members strong, the JBOV was led in this
Relations, at 205-996-7453 or acofield@uab.edu.
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 13
M CCOIN SCHOLARSHIP DEDICATED
in Memory of Babies Morgan and Houston
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE STRAWN
Seth and Elizabeth McCoin at the resolution presentation
From left: Paula Midyette, Webster Ray, Anna Cook, Jean Tomlinson, Seth McCoin, Erin Kattus, Kate Hamilton, Elizabeth McCoin, Megan Spain, Emory Kent, Augusta Shearer
14 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
It was a ceremony marking the dedication of a Junior Board of Visitors (JBOV) endowed scholarship. And it was much more. This event honored the memories of two precious babies whose impact planted the scholarship’s seeds. It honored the babies’ courageous parents and dedicated nurses and other caretakers who cared for the babies. It honored JBOV members who in 2012 conducted the JBOV’s most successful fundraiser to date, raising $108,551 to create the scholarship. Thus it was that, on June 21, an audience gathered at the UAB Women & Infants Center for the dedication of the Seth Houston McCoin, Jr. and Elizabeth Morgan McCoin Endowed Scholarship in Pediatric Nursing. The tiny twin babies for whom the scholarship is named, Houston and Morgan, were born three months prematurely at St. Vincent’s Birmingham on September 7, 2011. Houston died four days after birth. His sister Morgan, transferred to UAB Women & Infants Center when she was a month old, lived until age 9 months. After their deaths, their parents – JBOV member Elizabeth McCoin and her husband Seth – said they were so touched by their babies’ caretakers that they wanted Morgan and Houston to be remembered through a JBOV pediatric nursing scholarship. “I can’t think of a better gift you could give,” Dean Doreen C. Harper said of the babies’ parents as she spoke at the ceremony. “This presentation is about your strength and courage, your perseverance and inspiration.” Although Morgan and Houston had short lives, Dean Harper said that “families will know them, through the nurses awarded this scholarship for years to come.” Seth McCoin said he and Elizabeth hope their babies “will continue to reach into your hearts.” Calling the dedication “a celebration of our babies and also of the excellent care they received,” he said: “Thank you for loving our children. Thank you for loving us. Today we celebrate the lives of our children and also their caretakers.” The babies’ caretakers were cited in the scholarship resolution: “This scholarship is to honor the nurses and (other) healthcare professionals who so tenderly and compassionately cared for Houston and Morgan, including, Angie Barganier, Ashley Costa, Lyndsey Cunningham, Amanda Draper, Helen Elcott, Melissa Elliott, Katelyn Englert, Juliet Haikes, Amanda Hoover, Emory Horne, Mallory Hornsby, Sally Kinder, Maggie Logan, Stephanie Magnus, Kathryn McDaniel, Tiffany McMillan, Sarah Newell, Miriam Patterson, Alanna Shiftlett, Stacy Stovall, Stephanie Thomas, Corinne Vrazel, and nurse practitioners Lisa Costa, Courtney Holmes, Wilma King, and Ashley Kirkpatrick.” Incoming JBOV Co-Chair Kate Hamilton said JBOV members are “so glad we could remember the babies in this way.”
JUNIOR BOARD MEMBER PROFILE
Kate Hamilton and Sidney Clapp When the Junior Board of Visitors ( JBOV) leadership gavel is passed in January, for the first time the Chair position will be shared by two JBOV members. Succeeding the third Chair, Ashelynn Falkenburg Smith, will be Co-Chairs Kate Wood Hamilton and Sidney Wood Clapp. Kate and Sidney are sisters, accustomed to tackling projects together since childhood. They have remained close, within a close-knit family, their lives intersecting in special ways. Today both Kate and Sidney are married, with children. They live only a few houses apart in Mountain Brook’s Crestline section. Their husbands, Ford Hamilton and Martin Clapp, have been friends since college. Ford and Martin both work in the family business, Wood Fruitticher – Ford in purchasing, Martin in information technology. Sidney and Martin first met at Kate and Ford’s wedding. Their children are near one another in age – Kate and Ford’s children, Elizabeth, 13, and Wood, 10, and Sidney and Martin’s children, Margaret Moore, 10; Lucy, 8; and Alice, 5. “Since everyone is close, it’s easy to spend time together,” says Sidney, who is called “Sister” by family and friends. Family connections spurred the sisters’ JBOV involvement. It was their Aunt Jean who approached them about becoming founding JBOV members and thus supporting the UAB School of Nursing. Aunt Jean is Jean Tomlinson, longtime member of the UAB nursing school’s senior Board of Visitors (BOV); her late husband, Jack, was a brother of Sidney and Kate’s late grandmother. The sisters’ family connections also helped the JBOV expand its No-Show Ball fundraising initiative of selling food-and-drink baskets delivered to supporters’ homes. To expand, the JBOV needed additional freezer and packing space for No-Show Ball preparation. That was arranged by Wood Fruitticher, which has such space for its business of distributing food and restaurant-related products. “Having freezer and packing space is a unique asset that turned out to be a blessing to help grow our JBOV fundraiser,” said Kate. The sisters received quick approval for Wood Fruitticher’s helping hand from their dad, Dave Wood II, who co-owns the company with his brother John. “It was like, ‘Hey Dad, what do you think of this?’ ” said Sidney. “He said, ‘Okay.’ ” In 2011, another Wood family member joined the JBOV – Angie Wood. She’s the wife of Kate and Sidney’s brother,
PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE WOOD
Sisters and JBOV members Sidney Clapp (left) and Kate Hamilton
Dave Wood III, who works in Wood Fruitticher’s warehouse operation, and who, like Kate and Sidney’s husbands, helps with the No-Show Ball. The JBOV’s 2012 and 2013 No-Show Ball fundraisers were the most successful in JBOV history. The two fundraisers combined generated a total of $181,163.95 for a scholarship in memory of the twin babies of JBOV member Elizabeth McCoin and her husband Seth – the Seth Houston McCoin, Jr., and Elizabeth Morgan McCoin Endowed Scholarship for Pediatric Nursing. Kate and Sidney are optimistic that JBOV momentum will continue. “Our members are inspired. We’ve come to view this as kind of a calling,” said Sidney. And, added Kate, JBOV members are unified in their mission:
“We know that nursing touches every single person.”
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 15
BOARD MEMBER PROFILE
Melinda Helveston PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE WOOD
As Melinda Helveston serves her community, she goes about it in a variety of ways. One of the organizations to which she lends a helping hand is The Foundry, a local rescue and recovery center for men and women suffering from addiction and often homelessness. Melinda personally mentors some women served by The Foundry. Another of Melinda’s focuses is being a board member of Cornerstone, which tackles poverty through quality education and faith-based character building. In her home city of Vestavia Hills, her interests include her church, Vestavia Hills United Methodist, and Vestavia Hills Garden Club. She’s also a strong cheerleader for her husband, Ron (known to family and friends as Bubba), who has
taken time from his busy life as president of CRC Insurance Company to visit and support an orphanage in the faraway land of Tibet, a plateau region of the People’s Republic of China. In 2010, Melinda accepted an opportunity to join the Board of Visitors of the UAB School of Nursing. “Members of this Board are such extraordinary people!” she said. As for the cause, Melinda said supporting nursing is close to her heart because she once considered becoming a nurse. That was before she opted instead to earn a University of Alabama degree in journalism, public relations, and English and entered a career that included a nine-year public relations stint with The Southern Company. Melinda’s appreciation for the health field has never lessened since that period when she considered becoming a nurse.
“Since I grew up in Birmingham, I have been very aware of how UAB’s wonderful health operations have grown. To me, that has been so impressive, such a gift,” she said, noting that the UAB School of Nursing is very much a part of that gift. When Melinda talked of what embarked her on the road to more community service, she recalled increasing her church work and immersing herself in PTA after leaving behind her career to devote more time to her personal life, which would include being a mother of four. Those four, now young adults, are 32-year-old son Blake, who is in the insurance business and, with wife Laura, on July 2 welcomed newborn son Charlie; 29-year-old social worker son Drew, married to Leigh – parents of son Mac, who will turn 2 in March; and twin daughters Emily and Haley, 22, University of Alabama seniors and roommates, both majoring in fashion merchandising. Melinda smiled as she spoke of her children, who’ve grown up to make her proud. She beamed, too, of initiatives she supports that make her proud. Of the UAB School of Nursing, there’s a particular aspect she admires. “I admire that, even though the UAB School of Nursing already is ranked among the top in the United States, the dean and faculty aren’t comfortable to allow the school to stand still,” she said. “The school’s leaders always are searching for ways to make the school better and better. I love that!”
16 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
IN MEMORY OF BOV MEMBER
Joie Jones
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE STRAWN
Board of Visitors member Joie Jones passed away late last year. The Board and the School of Nursing greatly appreciate Joie’s admiration and support of nursing and nursing education. She will be greatly missed.
Prior to becoming a member of the UAB School of Nursing’s Board of Visitors (BOV), Joie Jones had been immersed in health care for years as a medical technologist. She deeply appreciated the roles that nurses play in patient care. In 2004, Joie was interviewed for this Board Briefs publication. At that time, she was a client-relations manager for Birmingham-based Skin Pathology Associates, a pathologists’ practice specializing in dermatopathology (diagnosing of skin diseases, including skin cancers). Her husband, Dr. Robert E. “Bob” Jones, Jr., was a partner in that practice. Having become a BOV member in 2003, Joie spoke of her belief in BOV work. “I can’t say enough about how important I feel it is that our Board is providing scholarships to educate additional competent, caring nurses.” Joie would continue to be a BOV member until her death on December 22, 2012. As part of her service during those years, Joie joined fellow BOV members Jean Tomlinson and Donna Reddinger in co-chairing the BOV’s 2006 fundraiser. That event, with a patriotic military Australian theme of “Bivouac in the Outback,” was among a series of BOV fundraisers inspired by the M*A*S*H movie and television series. Current BOV Co-Chair Barbara O’Neal Eddleman, a friend of Joie’s, paid tribute to her. “Joie loved the UAB School of Nursing and the Board of Visitors,” said Barbara. “She gave so willingly of herself to the Board’s work to support the School. Too, Joie was a kind, loving, and giving friend.”
In her 2004 interview, Joie recalled knowing by the time she was in high school that she wanted to work in the health field. After attending Tift College in Forsyth, Georgia, she entered Anderson College’s medical technology program, in her hometown of Anderson, South Carolina. In addition to working as a medical technologist, Joie did volunteer work, such as supporting Alabama Symphony and Birmingham Music Club activities. When asked to join the BOV and thus support the UAB School of Nursing, she felt closely connected to this health-related cause. Already aware of nurses’ contributions, Joie said she became even more aware on a personal level during early 2004, when her mother was gravely ill and she was with her mom a great deal during that time.
“Long before this period when my mother was so ill, I had realized the value of good nurse, and I had realized there is a severe shortage of good nurses,” said Joie. “But during those weeks at my mother’s bedside I absolutely came to appreciate these realities more than ever! When my mother was ill, it came home to me that the nurse is the main person with whom a hospital patient and the patient’s family communicate – the main person.”
UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs | 17
MESSAGE TO OUR Supporters and Friends
As I reminisce about what you have done in 2013 to help further the UAB School of Nursing’s mission of producing top-notch nurse leaders who will positively impact the health of our state and nation, I am truly overwhelmed. The significance of our Board of Visitor’s hard work in raising more than $100,000 for a doctoral nursing scholarship through Another Round of Applause is immeasurable, and I want you all to know how appreciative our students and faculty are for your unwavering support. It is this unwavering support that has made a real difference in our ability to recruit the most motivated and qualified students from across our state, country, and world. As a result, our graduates are leaving our programs equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to change our world—which is precisely what they are doing. As we close out 2013, the University is embarking on its unified five-year capital campaign. “Give something, change everything” is the theme for this campaign to raise $1 billion, which I find especially fitting for our steadfast supporters and friends. Your immense generosity has truly changed the School of Nursing for the better by allowing us to triple our student enrollment over the past seven years. Both undergraduate and graduate programs have benefited from this exponential growth, which would have been impossible without your support. On behalf of the students whose lives have been changed because of your generosity, I thank you. By growing our student body, we are increasing the number of highly educated nurse leaders in our world who are qualified to use innovative and transformational practices in their work to improve health. A review of 2013 would be incomplete without reliving the incredible success of No-Show Ball and thanking our Junior Board of Visitors for its unyielding efforts to produce yet another successful fundraiser for nursing scholarships in memory of babies Houston and Morgan McCoin. As we look forward to the many exciting plans in store for the UAB School of Nursing in 2014, an especially meaningful event will be awarding the first scholarship from the Seth Houston McCoin, Jr. and Elizabeth Morgan McCoin Endowed Scholarship in Pediatric Nursing. I am already looking forward to introducing you all to its first recipient in the Spring! Reminiscing is always enjoyable when memories are filled with great people, outstanding accomplishments, and unforgettable moments. For the UAB School of Nursing, this year has brought more excitement and reasons to celebrate than we could have ever imagined. It is my sincere pleasure to serve you all as you selflessly serve our School, and I thank you for the important work you do to transform health by educating our students — through every level of their training — year after year.
Jeannie E. Horton, Senior Director of Development 18 | UAB School of Nursing Board Briefs
What do you want to know today? UAB.edu
How can knowledge change the world? World-changing knowledge comes from a spirit of curiosity, a culture of compassion, and an atmosphere of boldness and ingenuity. It prepares today’s students to become tomorrow’s leaders, formulates scientific discoveries now that will have an impact for decades to come, and reaches out to the communities around us and our neighbors around the globe. At UAB, we know that knowledge is a powerful thing to create and to share. And when you do that, the world will never be the same.
2012 BOARD OF VISITORS Robert E. Luckie III, Chair | Barbara O'Neal Eddleman, Co-Chair Jane Arendall Kim Benos Carolyn F. Boone *Lella Bromberg Bruce E. Burns, M.D. Zoë Cassimus Joy Deupree, PhD Punky Eastwood Juanzetta Flowers, PhD Melinda Helveston Arlene Henley Everett Holle Fay Ireland Donna Jernigan Margaret Kidd *Sue Ellen Lucas Anita Smith Lunsford *Barrett MacKay Charles A. McCallum, Jr., DMD, MD Nancy Meisler Anne Michaels
Paula Midyette Pam Miller George Perdue, Jr. Henry B. Ray, Jr. Donna Reddinger Carol Sandner Kay Scruggs Kate Sexton Wanda Simon William E. Somerall, Jr., MD Rita Spencer Catherine Styslinger Leah Taylor Douglas C. Tilt, MD *Jean Tomlinson R. Edward Varner, MD Celia Wallace *Elizabeth Wallace Nancy Watts Nancy Worthington
Emeritus: *Karle Falkenburg *Rose Marie Lee Alma McMahon *Bobbie Parsons LaVona Rushton Jeanie S. Sherlock Lanette C. Sherrill In Remembrance: Minnie Gaston Elwynn “Chick” Hale, EdD Joy P. Harbert Gloria Goldstein Howton Marie Ingalls Joie Jones Rita Kimerling Jarman Lowder Robert E. Luckie, Jr. *Former Chair
2012 JUNIOR BOARD OF VISITORS Ashelynn Smith, Chair John Bankhead Jim Beatty Franklin Bradford Gerry Cabaniss *Mary Katherine Cabaniss Meredith Calhoun Sidney Clapp Anna Cook
*Ginny DeBardeleben Kate Hamilton Emory Kent Carolyn Jordan Erin Kattus Julia King Elizabeth McCoin Dottie Mitchell
Sarah Peinhardt Webster Ray Laura Robertson Augusta Shearer Megan Spain Angie Wood *Former Chair
HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY The UAB SON is grateful to be included in your end-of-year giving plans and greatly appreciates each and every donation! Your generosity impacts our students, faculty, research progress, and service outreach to individuals and families in need. To support faculty recruitment, growth, and development—one of our most critical strategic priorities— please make your check payable to “SON Educational Foundation.” Thank you and warmest holiday wishes! PLEASE NOTE: Year-end gifts can be made by credit card until midnight December 31 at www.uab.edu/onlinegiving. You may also mail your gift to the SON Office of Development and Alumni Relations. Envelopes postmarked on or before December 31 will receive 2013 tax-year credit.
OFFICE OF DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNI RELATIONS Doreen C. Harper, PhD, RN, FAAN Dean and Fay B. Ireland Endowed Chair in Nursing 205.934.5360 I dcharper@uab.edu
Andrea Cofield Director of Operations and Board Relations 205.996.7453 I acofield@uab.edu
Jeannie E. Horton Senior Director of Development 205.975.2443 I jhorton@uab.edu
Emily Craig Director of Alumni Affairs 205.975.9419 I ecraig1@uab.edu
Christina McGuinness Program Manager 205.975.8936 I cmcg11@uab.edu
1720 2nd Avenue South, NB 1010 Birmingham, Alabama 35294-1210 I www.uab.edu/nursing