Virginia Tilden, D.N.Sc., associate dean for research for the Oregon
Health & Science University School of Nursing in Portland, will be
appointed to serve as sixth dean of the University of Nebraska Medical
Center College of Nursing pending approval of the University of Nebraska
Board of Regents. Dr. Tilden, 57, who plans to assume the post Oct. 8,
would succeed Ada Lindsey, Ph.D., dean of the UNMC College of Nursing,
who will retire July 31 after more than eight years at UNMC.
Im very excited and pleased to be joining UNMC and Chancellor Maurers
leadership team. Its a real privilege, Dr. Tilden said. The colleges
reputation was a great attraction. Its very strong in its ranking among
graduate programs among schools of nursing and is known as having very
strong academic programs and viewed as coming up quickly in the research
arena. Im very excited about that.
As we all know, not only is research essential for the nursing discipline,
cutting edge science and for clinical practice, it also is a very important
source of revenue as the budgets of states across the country are challenged,
she said.
Dr. Tilden, who is also a professor of nursing and associate director
of the Center for Ethics in Health Care, received her bachelors degree
in nursing from the Georgetown University School of Nursing in Washington,
D.C. in 1967. She earned both her masters degree in psychiatric nursing
in 1971 and her doctorate in nursing science in 1981 from the University
of California School of Nursing in San Francisco.
Dr. Tilden said she was impressed during her visit with the warmth
and spirit of Nebraskans.
I was also drawn to the fact that the college serves all corners of
the state. It means it serves all of Nebraska and that there is a window
to nursing education so those who pursue nursing can stay in the communities
in which they live. Its extremely important for a school to provide access
to everyone, not just an urban corridor, Dr. Tilden said.
As dean, Dr. Tilden will be responsible for providing leadership in
planning, organizing and securing the necessary resources to accomplish
the goals and objectives of the college.
I am so pleased that Dr. Tilden has made the decision to join us at
UNMC, said Mary Haven, associate dean of UNMCs School of Allied Health
Professions and chairwoman of the search committee. She will be
an excellent dean. With her expertise and experience she will build on
the outstanding work that Dr. Lindsey and the current faculty have done
to increase the national and international status of the College of Nursing.
Dr. Tilden has held an endowed professorship, the A.B. Youmans Spaulding
Distinguished Professorship in Nursing, since 1998 and is nationally known
for her extensive research related to end-of-life care. She was one of
the founders of the Center for Ethics in Health Care and has led the centers
research program on improving care of the dying.
She has been a principal investigator of National Institutes of Health
(NIH)-funded research and training grants since 1986. She has been active
in teaching, curriculum development and program evaluation since 1974.
She began her career in nursing in 1967 as a psychiatric nurse at the
Langley Porter Neuro-Psychiatric Institute in San Francisco, then from
1968 to 1969 at the Hawaii State Hospital in Kaneohe, Hawaii. In 1972,
she began lecturing at the University of California San Francisco School
of Nursing where she ultimately served as assistant clinical professor
(1975-1977) and clinical instructor, psychiatric nursing (1981-1982).
In 1982, she accepted a position as associate professor at the Oregon
Health & Science University School of Nursing. In 1991 she became associate
dean for research, and in 1988 was elevated to professor of nursing.
Under Dr. Tildens leadership, the Oregon Health & Science University
School of Nursing has grown to rank 8th of 90 nursing schools in the country
for receiving research funding from the NIH.
“The search committee has done an outstanding job in seeking excellent
candidates for dean,” said UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. Dr.
Tilden’s strong leadership skills and commitment to education, research
and clinical practice will enable the college to reach new heights. Her
special expertise in research development is a perfect fit for UNMC at
this time. We are delighted to welcome her to the UNMC family.
She has received funding as principal investigator, co-principal investigator
or co-director of 20 research grants, many of them funded by the NIH National
Institute of Nursing Research, has presented more than 100 papers and presentations
nationally and internationally, has published 61 articles and written eight
book chapters.
She has received numerous honors and awards over the years, including
the Pathfinder Distinguished Researcher Award from the Friends of the National
Institute of Nursing Research, Distinguished Faculty Award for Research
from the Oregon Health & Science University, Distinguished Alumni Award
from the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing and
Nurse of the Year Award from Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
Her national leadership roles include that of study section member for
both the National Institutes of Health and the Agency for Health Care Research
and Quality. She has been on the Board of Directors of the American Nurses
Foundation, the American Academy of Nursing and the Council for the Advancement
of Nursing Science. She also is an associate editor for Nursing Research.
The daughter of a former foreign service officer, Dr. Tilden lived in
five different countries before entering high school in Washington, D.C.