Faculty Awards / Honors

Recent Faculty Awards (since 2016)

Brittany Beasley, PhD, RN, CNE

  • 2016-2018: Recipient of Jonas Nurse Leaders Scholarship
  • 2017: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2016: Top 40 Nurses Under 40, Arkansas Action Coalition
  • 2016: Skelly Scholar

Pamela deGravelles, PhD, RN

  • 2019: Sigma Theta Tau International, Gamma Xi Chapter, Service Award
  • 2017: Teaching Scholar, UAMS
  • 2017: IPE Master Facilitator
  • 2017: Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Geriatric Education to Medical Students, Dept. of Geriatric Education, UAMS College of Medicine

Beverly English, MNSc, RN, CPN

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award

Deena Garner, DNP, APRN, CPNP-PC

  • 2019: 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award

Jennifer L. Gernat, MNSc, OCN, RN-BC

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2019: Top Ten Poster at Arkansas Nursing Research Conference
  • 2018: Outstanding Oncology Research Poster Award, Arkansas Nursing Research Conference
  • 2018: Top Ten Poster at Arkansas Nursing Research Conference
  • 2017: ONS Foundation Congress Fellowship

Donna Gullette, PhD, RN, APRN, ACNP-BC, AGACNP-BC

  • 2019: Preconference workshop, National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties
  • 2018: Inducted as Fellow in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2017-2020: Member of Editorial Board, Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care

Lauren Haggard-Duff, PhD, RN, CNE

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Extraordinary Teamwork Award, UAMS
  • 2016: 40 Under 40 Exceptional Nurse Leader Award, Arkansas Action Coalition

Melodee Harris, PhD, RN, APRN, GNP-BC, AGPCNP-BC

  • 2019: National Hartford Center of Gerontological Nursing Excellence Distinguished Educator in Gerontological Nursing
  • 2019: UAMS Phenomenal Women Award
  • 2019: Fellowship, American Academy of Nursing
  • 2019: Gerontological Advanced Practice Nursing Special Interest Group Excellence Award
  • 2018: Finalist, Josiah Macy Faculty Scholarship Award
  • 2017: Gerontological Advanced Practice Nursing Special Interest Group Excellence Award
  • 2017: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2016: Outstanding Arkansas Health Professionals
  • 2016: Outstanding Masters Faculty Award, UAMS

Laura Hays, PhD, APRN, FAHA

  • 2019: UAMS Teaching Scholar
  • 2019: Top 10 Poster at Southern Nursing Research Society (SNRS) conference
  • 2018: Elected Fellow, American Heart Association (AHA)

Marilyn Faye Hughes, DNP, MNSc, RN

  • 2018: Kathryn P. “Bucky” Thomas Award
  • 2018: Outstanding BSN Faculty Award — Hope campus

Jamie Jones, MSN, RN, CNE

  • 2018: Scholarly Achievement Award, Best Graduate Student Poster, Arkansas Nursing Research Alliance Evidence-Based Practice Forum

Sara Jones, PhD, RN, APRN, PMHNP-BC

  • 2019: Elected Fellow, American Association of Nurse Practitioners (FAANP)
  • 2018: Outstanding MNSc Faculty Award, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2017: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2015: 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40 Award, Arkansas Center for Nursing

Pam LaBorde, DNP, APRN, CCNS

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2019: UAMS Teaching Scholar

Leanne Lefler, PhD, RN, APRN, ACNS-BC, FAHA

  • 2018: Outstanding PhD Faculty Award, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2018: Award for Service, Southern Nursing Research Society (SNRS)
  • 2017: Great 100 Nurses off Arkansas Award
  • 2017: Robert W. Johnson Foundation, Campaign Outreach Advocate for the Culture of Health (COACH) Award
  • 2016: UAMS Phenomenal Women Award
  • 2016: Elected to Board of Directors of Southern Nursing Research Society (SNRS)
  • 2016: Robert W. Johnson Foundation, Culture of Health Breakthrough Leaders in Nursing Award

Leslie McCormack, MSN, RN, APRN, CNM

  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award

Jean McSweeney, PhD, RN, FAHA, FAAN

  • 2019: Invited speaker, NINR Director’s Lectureship, National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), Bethesda, Maryland
  • 2019: Recipient of the American Heart Association’s Healthcare Volunteer of the Year Award
  • 2018: UAMS Women’s Cardiovascular Health Professorship
  • 2017: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2016: Named as one of Arkansas’ Best Healthcare Professionals in About You (AY) Magazine
  • 2016: Invited Faculty, American Heart Association Research Leadership Academy
  • 2016: Outstanding PhD Faculty Member, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2016: UAMS Graduate School Mentor Award

Donna Middaugh, PhD, RN

  • 2019: UAMS Phenomenal Woman
  • 2019: UAMS Outstanding Woman Faculty Member
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Outstanding Graduate Faculty Award, UAMS College of Nursing

Anita Mitchell, PhD, RN, APRN, FNP-BC

  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2016: Graduate Faculty of the Year Award, UAMS College of Nursing

Corey Nagel, PhD, MPH, RN

  • 2014-2016: Claire M Fagin Fellow, John A Hartford Foundation/Gerontological Society of America

Pearman Parker, PhD, MPH, RN

  • 2018: Top 100 Nurses in South Carolina Award
  • 2018: Top Student Poster Session Award, Southern Nurses Research Society (SNRS)
  • 2018: Selected as Graduate Trainee, Interdisciplinary Graduate Training to Eliminate Cancer Disparities (IGniTE-CD) Award
  • 2016: Awarded Graduate Trainee Scholarship by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute
  • 2016: Awarded travel stipend by University of South Carolina Graduate School and College of Nursing
  • 2016: 2nd Place, Minority Health Research Interest Group Poster Award, Southern Nurses Research Society (SNRS)
  • 2016: Dean’s Doctoral Fellowship
  • 2014-2018: Myrtle Irene Brown Fellowship

Larronda Rainey, MNSc, RN

  • 2019: Recipient of the Arkansas Nurse Educator Award
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Best Faculty Award for RN-BSN Program, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2017: Best Faculty Award for RN-BSN Program, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2017: Nominee, Nurse Educator Award
  • 2016: Nominee finalist for the UAMS Diversity Award

Leah Richardson, PhD, MSN, RN

  • 2019: Outstanding BSN Faculty Award, Class of 2018-2019
  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Outstanding Future Nurse Leader Award
  • 2018: The Dr. Eric Ashworth Hodges Award for Best Dissertation, UAMS College of Nursing
  • 2017: Sigma Theta Tau International Gamma Xi Chapter Research Award
  • 2017: Top 10 Student Poster, Arkansas Nursing Research Conference
  • 2017: Spring Dissertation Research Award, UAMS College of Nursing

Elizabeth Riley, DNP, RNC-NIC, CNE

  • 2019: 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40 Award, Arkansas Center for Nursing
  • 2019: Gamma Xi Spring 2019 Research Award, Sigma

Martha Rojo, PhD, RN

  • 2019: Graduate School Faculty of the Year Award, UAMS

Kimberly Stickley, DNP, RN, APRN, FNP-C, PMHNP-BC

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Gamma Xi Practice Award (STTI)

Joan Tackett, MNSc, RN, APRN, FNP-BC

  • 2019: Graduate Faculty Award, UAMS
  • 2019: Sigma Gamma Xi Practice Awards

Stephanie Trotter, PhD, RN

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award

Nicole Ward, MNSc, RN, APRN, WHNP-BC

  • 2018: Sigma Gamma Xi Leadership Award
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2016: 40 Nurse Leaders Under 40 Award, Arkansas Center for Nursing

Sherri Ward, DNP, RN

  • 2019: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2019: Top 3 Finalist for Arkansas Nurse Educator of the Year

Teresa Whited, DNP, RN, APRN, CPNP-PC

  • 2019: Advocacy Scholar Award, National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Associates
  • 2018: Nominee, Outstanding Nurse Educator of the Year
  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2017: Leadership in Academic Nursing (LANP) Fellow, American Academy of Colleges of Nursing

Patricia Wright, PhD, RN

  • 2018: Great 100 Nurses of Arkansas Award
  • 2018: Graduate School Faculty Member of the Year, UAMS
  • 2018: Graduate School Mentor Award, UAMS
  • 2017: STTI/SNRS Research Grant Award
  • 2017: Graduate School Travel Award, UAMS
  • 2017: Graduate School Mentor Award, UAMS