July 12, 2017 | Seven UAMS College of Nursing faculty members were named to the Arkansas Center for Nursing’s “40 Under 40” 2017 list.
The list honors nursing professionals in the state under the age of 40. The honorees, who came from health systems and universities across the state, were selected based on their commitment to excellence, service and outreach, leadership qualities, and contributions to the advancement of the nursing profession.
“We’re thrilled to have so many faculty members from the College of Nursing recognized by the Arkansas Center for Nursing,” said Patricia A. Cowan, Ph.D., R.N., dean of the College of Nursing. “Our faculty play such an important role in educating the next generation of nursing professionals and that work deserves to be commended.”
The nurses were recognized at a June 23 ceremony at the Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock. The College of Nursing faculty on the 2017 list were:
Maeghan E. Arnold MNSc, APRN
Clinical Instructor
Maeghan E. Arnold, MNSc, APRN, is a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing and nurse practitioner at the UAMS Neighborhood Clinic at Rahling Road. She’s been a clinical instructor at UAMS since October and has seen patients at the Rahling Road clinic since January.
Prior to coming to UAMS, Arnold was a nurse at Baptist Health and CARTI and also a nurse practitioner at CARTI.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2010 at the University of Central Arkansas and her Master of Nursing Science at UAMS in 2015.
Arnold is a member of the Arkansas Chapter of National Gerontological Nurses Association, National Gerontological Nurses Association, American Holistic Nurses Association, Arkansas Nurse Practitioner Association, Arkansas Nurses Association and Arkansas Women’s Outreach.
She also serves as a member on several College of Nursing committees and councils, including the Graduate Council and Practice Committee, as well as Awards and Scholarship, and Faculty Assembly.
Ashley S. Davis MNSc, RN
Clinical Instructor
Ashley S. Davis, MNSc, RN, is an academic coach and clinical instructor in the College of Nursing. She’s served in that role since 2015.
Prior, she was a clinical education specialist at Arkansas Children’s in 2010. From 2006 to 2015, she was a faculty member at Baptist Health Schools and the administrator for Health Education Services Inc. assessments.
Davis earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2004 and her Master of Science in Nursing in 2011 at UAMS. She’s in the College of Nursing’s PhD program and is set to graduate in 2018.
She’s principal investigator on a grant awarded from the College of Nursing on implementing learning communities in undergraduate nursing education. She was co-investigator on a grant from the UAMS Educator’s Academy that assessed trends that affect BSN students who fail the NCLEX-RN exam after graduation.
Davis is a member of the Southern Nurse Research Society, National League of Nurses and the Gamma Xi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau.
Jessica Fowler MNSc, APRN
Clinical Instructor
Jessica Fowler, MNSc, APRN, has worked part-time as a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing since 2016 and provides behavioral health services to UAMS students in northwest Arkansas. Now, she’s an independent contractor for psychiatric and mental health APRN services and owns a yoga therapy business, Vitality Yoga in Bentonville.
She graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 2004 with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing and from UAMS in 2014 with her Master of Nursing Science. She’s enrolled in the College of Nursing’s Doctor of Nursing Practice program and is expected to graduate in 2019.
Fowler’s experience as a charge nurse and APRN includes Ozark Guidance Center in Springdale and Piney Ridge Center in Fayetteville. She currently provides telemental health services and trauma-informed yoga therapy services.
She serves as the secretary for the Arkansas chapter of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association.
Leslie McCormack MNSc, APRN
Clinical Instructor
Leslie McCormack, MNSc, APRN, has been a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing since 2015.
Before coming to UAMS, she was an adjunct clinical instructor in nursing at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in 2014.
McCormack earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2008 at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and her Master of Nursing Science in 2013 at Frontier Nursing University in Hyden, Kentucky.
She was a nurse at Washington Regional Medical Center in Fayetteville from 2008-2009 and at Creekside Center for Women in Johnson from 2009-2011. From 2013-2014, she was a nurse midwife at the Birth Center of Northwest Arkansas in Rogers.
McCormack a member of the Gamma Xi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau.
Kamala Steele DNP, RN
Clinical Instructor
Kamala Steele, DNP, RN, has been a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing since 2014.
She’s taught several courses in the college’s RN to BSN program, including community health nursing, cultural diversity and leadership and management. Steele has served outreach programs in the College of Nursing, including Generation Next and the Community Campus Partnership Conference to Address Health Disparities, both associated with the Growing Our Own in the Delta (GOOD) program.
Steele served as chairperson on the college’s Baccalaureate Council from 2016-2017 and was a member of the Evaluation and Assessment Committee from 2015-2017. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau and the Golden Key International Honor Society.
Steele’s been a nurse at several health care facilities in Memphis, including Methodist University Hospital, HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital and Crossroads Hospice.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2006 at the University of Central Arkansas, her Master of Science in Nursing in 2010 at Loyola University and her Doctor of Nursing Practice in 2017 at American Sentinel University.
Mark Tanner DNP, RN
BSN Program Director
Mark Tanner, DNP, RN, is program director of the College of Nursing’s BSN Program. He’s served in the role since July 2016.
Tanner was interim director of the program from January to June in 2016. He’s been a College of Nursing faculty member since 2010, serving as an assistant clinical instructor, clinical instructor and clinical assistant professor.
He was a nurse in the Neurological Intensive Care Unit at UAMS from 2010-2012 and a nurse in the Progressive Care Unit at UAMS from 2008-2010.
He earned his Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2008, his Master of Science in Nursing in 2012 and his Doctor of Nursing Practice in 2015, all from UAMS. Tanner also holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Brigham Young University.
He’s a member of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses and the Gamma Xi chapter of Sigma Theta Tau. He’s presented and been a guest lecturer at various conferences and meetings across the state.
Angela Willis DNP, RN
Clinical Instructor
Angela Willis, DNP, RN, has been a clinical instructor in the College of Nursing since 2015.
Before coming to UAMS, Willis worked as a nurse, clinic coordinator, clinical instructor and patient care manager in the ICU at Arkansas Children’s from 2003-2011. She then worked six years at St. Vincent as a nurse manager and house supervisor.
She earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2003 and her Master of Science in Nursing Administration in 2010 at UAMS. She also holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice, which she completed at the University of South Alabama in 2013.
Willis is a board member for Partners in Psychiatric Nursing.