Vinciya Pandian has been appointed dean of the College of Nursing at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Her appointment will begin July 1. 

Pandian currently serves as associate dean for graduate education and professor of nursing at Penn State’s Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing. She holds a joint appointment in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery in the Penn State College of Medicine.  

“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Pandian to UT,” said Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor John Zomchick. “She brings an outstanding record of leadership, innovation and service, along with a deep commitment to advancing nursing education, research and patient care. I am confident that her vision and collaborative approach will build on the college’s many strengths and help shape an exciting future for the College of Nursing.” 

Pandian’s role will include serving as associate senior vice president for nursing academic-practice partnerships at UT Medical Center, and she will hold the Lisa and Greg Reed Endowed Dean’s Chair. 

“I am honored and humbled to join the University of Tennessee and the College of Nursing,” Pandian said. “UT’s Volunteer spirit and Volunteer Creed resonate deeply with me because they reflect a life of service — a value that has shaped my own nursing journey since my undergraduate education at Christian Medical College, India, whose motto is ‘Not to be ministered unto, but to minister.’ I look forward to partnering with faculty, staff, students, alumni and healthcare leaders to build on the college’s strong foundation and continue preparing compassionate, highly skilled nurses who improve the health and well-being of communities in Tennessee and beyond.” 

Renowned research, teaching and collaboration 

Pandian is an internationally recognized leader in nursing research, education and patient safety, specializing in critical care, tracheostomy care and improving outcomes for patients requiring a ventilator. In her current role, she leads Penn State’s Center for Immersive Learning and Digital Innovation, supported by federal funding from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. She has also received research funding from the National Institutes of Health.  

Pandian is recognized around the world for her commitment to interdisciplinary collaboration, innovation, mentorship and global engagement, with partnerships in Nigeria, India and Portugal and leadership roles including president of the Global Tracheostomy Collaborative. Among her many honors, she was named a Fulbright specialist by the U.S. Department of State and received the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award from AmeriCorps and the Office of the President of the United States for her commitment to volunteer service and community impact.  

Pandian holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Christian Medical College in Vellore, India. She earned a Master of Science in Nursing as an acute care nurse practitioner and a Doctor of Philosophy in nursing, both from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Baltimore.   

Pandian will build upon the legacy established by Dean Victoria Niederhauser, who has served in the role since 2011 and announced last fall that she would retire at the end of the 2025-26 academic year. During Niederhauser’s tenure, the College of Nursing underwent remarkable growth and innovation. The college became one of the nation’s fastest-growing nursing programs, with enrollment increasing from approximately 500 students to more than 1,400. Graduates consistently outperform state and national averages on licensure and certification exams, and the college regularly ranks as one of the best among public universities. 

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MEDIA CONTACT: 

Erica Estep (865-974-2225, [email protected]) 

Kara Clark (865-974-9498, [email protected]) 

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville College of Nursing announced today that Victoria Niederhauser, current dean of the college, will be honored with a named space in the UT Medical Nursing Building, recognizing her transformational leadership and lasting impact on nursing education in Tennessee and beyond. 

The announcement was made during the college’s annual Alumni & Friends Event on May 7, held in celebration of National Nurses Week, before a crowd of alumni, faculty, students, and community partners. 

The third-floor student commons and collaboration space will be named the Dean Victoria Page Niederhauser Student Commons, serving as a lasting tribute to Niederhauser’s vision for student success, innovation, and excellence in nursing education. 

Since joining the university as the college’s fourth dean, Niederhauser has led a period of unprecedented growth and national recognition. Among the many milestones achieved during her tenure: 

• Transformational Facilities: Led the successful planning, funding, and opening of the UT Medical Center Nursing Building in August 2025, a state-of-the-art facility designed to prepare the next generation of nurses. 

• National Rankings: Advanced the college’s national standing, including top rankings for both undergraduate and doctoral nursing programs. 

• Student Success: Maintained exceptional licensure outcomes well above state and national averages. 

• Research Growth: Expanded the college’s research enterprise, securing more than $33 million in research funding since FY20 and advancing work in precision health, telehealth, mental health, and health policy. 

• Workforce Impact: Strengthened partnerships with regional health systems, including the University of Tennessee Medical Center and Dolly Parton Children’s Hospital, creating innovative programs that produce more than 100 BSN-prepared nurses annually for the local workforce. 

• Philanthropic Momentum: Inspired more than $75 million in philanthropic support to advance student scholarships, faculty excellence, and facility enhancements. 

Niederhauser announced her retirement in the fall. She will conclude her time at the college this summer. 

The Dean Victoria Page Niederhauser Student Commons will provide a dedicated space for collaboration, learning, and connection while supporting generations of nursing students as they prepare to lead in a rapidly evolving health care environment. 

In addition to the naming, several generous friends of the college have come together to establish the Dr. Victoria Page Niederhauser Endowed Faculty Fund for Nursing Excellence. This endowed fund will provide lasting support for outstanding faculty in the College of Nursing by strengthening efforts to recruit, retain, and invest in exceptional educators, clinicians, and researchers. Through this commitment, the fund will help advance nursing education, research, and practice across Tennessee for generations to come.

Contacts:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

Lauren Bryant ([email protected], 865-974-8250)

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Nursing welcomed middle school students from across Knox County Schools for its inaugural Vol Nurse Discovery Day, an immersive, hands-on experience designed to introduce young learners to careers in nursing and health care.

Held at the UT Medical Nursing Building, the event brought together students from Gresham Middle School, Whittle Springs Middle School, and Halls Middle School for a day of exploration, learning, and inspiration.

The program began with a welcome from Victoria Niederhauser, dean of the college, who emphasized the vital role nurses play in improving health and transforming lives. Students then rotated through interactive sessions that highlighted the many pathways and possibilities within the nursing profession.

Throughout the morning, participants engaged in three core experiences:

• Simulation-based learning, where students explored real-world nursing scenarios and practiced basic clinical skills in a hands-on environment.
• Health care career exploration, featuring insights into specialties such as pediatrics, geriatrics, and surgical nursing.
• Admissions and academic pathways, offering step-by-step guidance on how to become a nurse, including education, certifications, and licensure.

A highlight of the day was the “Day in the Life with Ambassadors” session, where current nursing students shared personal experiences, offered advice, and answered questions about life in the program and the profession.

The event concluded with closing remarks and reflections on the impact nurses have in their communities and beyond.

Vol Nurse Discovery Day reflects the college’s ongoing commitment to strengthening the future health care workforce by engaging students early and providing meaningful exposure to the nursing profession.

“By connecting middle school students with faculty, health care partners, and current nursing students, the college is helping to spark interest in health care careers and build a pipeline of future nurses prepared to meet the growing demands of the profession,” said Niederhauser.

The experience also reflects the goals of Knox County Schools’ 865 Academies, which connects students to real-world experiences and career pathways, helping them explore high-demand fields like nursing and health care at an early age.

Contacts:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

Lauren Bryant ([email protected], 865-974-1271)

For Ashley Curl, MSN ’16, nursing has always been about more than treating symptoms. It’s about restoring quality of life, dignity, and hope. Curl is now the founder of AgeWell Medical, a nurse-owned, woman-led concierge clinic redefining how patients experience care.

Curl’s leadership journey began during her graduate education, where she served as a graduate teaching assistant for the College of Nursing’s bachelor’s program. Over the course of three semesters, she worked directly with undergraduate students, an experience that shaped her passion for mentorship.

“That role was incredibly rewarding,” Curl says. “Helping train the next generation of nurses showed me how powerful our profession really is.”

Her early clinical career took her into urgent care, where she treated a wide range of illnesses, from minor to life-threatening emergencies. While the fast-paced environment sharpened her skills, it also revealed a troubling reality: many patients relied on urgent care as their only access point to health care, with little opportunity for long-term treatment or prevention.

“I didn’t want to be the provider who had to say no,” she explains. “I kept asking if no one else is going to help these patients, who will?”

After the COVID-19 pandemic led to widespread burnout, Curl made a career shift. She joined a hormone clinic, where she saw firsthand how insurance-driven models often denied care to patients who needed it most. Many had been told their lab results were “normal,” even as their quality of life deteriorated.

“I believe care should be based on how people feel and function. Not just a number on a lab report,” Curl says. “So many of these patients had exhausted every option and were still suffering.”

Within months of treatment, she watched patients return with measurable improvements and renewed lives. That experience sparked the vision for AgeWell Medical.

Curl launched her clinic without outside investment, handling everything from licensing and compliance to branding and marketing. Drawing on prior small-business experience and a self-taught design skillset, she built a practice that was intentionally personal.

“I saved for a year to open and went more than six months without a paycheck,” she says. “It was hard, but I believed in what I was building.”

Operating outside the traditional insurance model allows Curl to remove barriers to care. Without third-party restrictions, treatment decisions are made collaboratively with time, trust, and individualized plans at the center.

“It becomes a true provider-patient relationship,” she explains. “Care moves faster, and patients have autonomy.”

AgeWell Medical focuses on proactive, root-cause care, addressing issues like obesity, hormonal imbalance, and metabolic disease before they escalate. The results have been transformative.

Curl has seen patients reverse prediabetes, discontinue blood pressure and cholesterol medications, eliminate the need for CPAP machines, and regain energy and confidence they thought they’d lost forever.

“This is about quality of life, more energy, less risk, and more years lived well,” she says. “The ripple effects are endless.”

Mentorship remains central to Curl’s work, shaped by her own experience navigating entrepreneurship without a clear roadmap. From licensing hurdles to leasing space, she learned many lessons the hard way and now shares that knowledge freely.

“I want other nurses to know they can do this,” she says. “We can own businesses. We can fill gaps in care. We can build the future of healthcare ourselves.”

She’s already helping fellow nurse practitioners take their first steps toward opening clinics, and she’s actively developing a nonprofit to support underserved veterans. Motivated by disparities in how hormone deficiencies are treated within the VA system, Curl hopes to bridge the gap so veterans don’t have to pay out of pocket for life-changing care.

“This will save lives,” she says simply.

Curl credits her graduate education at UT with teaching her adaptability and confidence across specialties from rural health and women’s health to dermatology and NICU care.

“UT showed me the gaps,” she says. “And it taught me that nurses are capable of filling them.”

Now, just seven months into opening her clinic, receiving an alumni award feels humbling.

“Having my dream and small-town business recognized by UT and the college is truly unbelievable,” said Curl. “Two years ago, this dream felt out of reach. Today, I’m living it. I hope to serve as an example that when you have a dream and are willing to work for it, incredible things can happen.”

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

For most of Jenny Burghardt’s life, everything unfolded just as planned.

A Knoxville native and Bearden High School graduate, she met her husband while attending Clemson University. The couple moved to Aiken, South Carolina, where she worked in tourism and settled into a carefully imagined five-year plan. Time to enjoy the newlywed life, followed by the desire to start a family. When she became pregnant with their first child, Ruthie, everything seemed to be falling perfectly into place.

At 35 weeks pregnant, she noticed something strange. Ruthie wasn’t moving.

She went to the hospital to make sure everything was okay. But as soon as they did an ultrasound she could tell something wasn’t right. Ruthie’s heart was no longer beating and there was nothing they could do. She was induced on a Sunday morning, and Ruthie was born Monday morning. She was stillborn.

Family and loved ones rushed to be at the couple’s side.

“Going home was the hardest part,” she says. Leaving the hospital without her baby was a pain she never could have imagined.

Just weeks before, Jenny’s sister saw a segment on the news about The Precious Prints Project, an organization through UT College of Nursing that creates fingerprint keepsakes for families experiencing child loss. She immediately called, secured a kit in Knoxville, and drove it down to South Carolina. Before leaving, her sister took Ruthie’s fingerprint and told her that a charm would be coming.

That small, tangible piece changed everything for Burghardt.

“She was real,” she says. “Here is a piece of her.”

That moment did not mark the end of grief, but the beginning of carrying Ruthie’s life forward in a different way.

Not long after Ruthie’s passing, she became pregnant again with their son, Jones. While the joy of new life was real, it was layered with unanswered questions and quiet fears. She had never known what happened to Ruthie, and yet, through it all, she felt the steady presence of the Lord.

Jones was born three days before Ruthie’s first birthday.

The joy was overwhelming but also complicated. “I was so thrilled to be pregnant again,” she says. “But it wasn’t Ruthie.”

She wrestled with how to carry Ruthie’s memory well while welcoming Jones fully. How do you tell a child about a sister they never met?

She searched for a resource that could help but couldn’t find one, so she created one.

From the beginning, she read her own words to Jones. Cutting phrases, pasting them into an existing book, shaping language that a child could understand. She needed something tangible and something she could place in the hands of other parents walking the same road.

That need became a children’s book titled More Love to Pour Out.

“One in four babies are lost through miscarriage or stillbirth,” she says. “I asked myself, what is mine to give to the world? This book was that.”

Written specifically for families welcoming children after loss, the book reflects on her lived experience with child appropriate language. She didn’t want Ruthie’s story to become something unspoken or postponed until her children were older. “This is part of our family story,” she says. “I wanted my kids to always know they have a sister.”

Explaining miscarriage and infant loss to children can feel overwhelming, but her approach was simple: focus on love.

“The gift of that baby’s life brought love into the world,” she says. “And that love remains.”

Rather than centering on grief, the book invites families to unleash that love and to let it shape kindness, generosity, and compassion in everyday life.

A portion of the book’s proceeds will support the Precious Prints Project.

“They’re doing the same thing I’m trying to do just in different ways,” she says. “They honor these babies. They encourage families. They offer hope when grief feels overwhelming.”

And hope, she says, is everything.

For families navigating pregnancy and infant loss, her message is: don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid to speak a child’s name. Don’t be afraid to ask how someone is doing.

“Good can come from even this,” she says. “Not as a way to minimize the pain, but to show that love is even bigger.”

For more information about More Love to Pour Out or to purchase the book please click here.

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

Elizabeth Sowell (’14, ’17, ’24 ) has embedded herself into the UT and nursing family for life. First as an alumnus and now as faculty, her nursing journey is deeply rooted in tradition, shaped by meaningful mentorship, and driven by a passion for advancing the future of our nursing students. 

A Fourth Generation Calling 

Nursing has always been a natural fit, an art and a science intertwined. As a fourth-generation nurse, she grew up surrounded by strong role models in the profession. Watching her mother and grandmother care for others inspired her early on, and she found that her love of science blended perfectly with the human-centered art of nursing. 

Her ties to UT run just as deep. Her mother, who grew up in Louisville, KY, chose UT for its strong nursing program and ended up meeting her father here. That connection to the College of Nursing is now shared across two generations. 

Memorable Faculty & Mentors 

During her undergraduate years, several faculty members made a lasting impact. She fondly remembers Laurie Acred-Natelson, who had also worked with her mother, and Gail Griffith, her first clinical instructor. Their dedication to teaching and investment in their students helped shape her early development as a nurse. Later, in her graduate studies, Karen Lasater became a key mentor, someone she now credits as a model for the educator she has become. 

Working alongside former instructors still feels a bit surreal, she admits, but also incredibly rewarding. 

Advice for Today’s Nursing Students“ 

“Nursing school is hard at every level,” Sowell says. “But stick with it.” 

Her biggest piece of advice is to develop strong time management and prioritization skills early on. And just as importantly: take care of yourself. She emphasizes that nurses must protect their own well-being, whether through regular exercise or personal time, in order to sustainably care for others. 

Her Current Role: From Clinician to Leader to Educator 

Her career began in the ICU and later as a family practice nurse practitioner. During that time, she decided to pursue her DNP, just as a new opportunity emerged with the college’s Community Registered Nurse Navigator Project. 

She stepped into the role of APRN director, overseeing 16 nurse navigators and providing clinical and administrative leadership for the multi-year grant. The position offered invaluable experience in management, evaluation, and large-scale public health work. 

When the grant concluded, her longtime goal became reality, and she transitioned into a faculty position. She now teaches in the graduate program, including core DNP courses and soon, clinical FNP courses. 

Most Rewarding Part of the Journey 

What stands out most to Sowell is the versatility of nursing. 

“You realize nurses are equipped to meet so many different needs,” she reflects. “We’re trained to think critically, lead, and adapt across settings.” 

Her experiences, from bedside care to community health to academic leadership, have shown her how wide-ranging and impactful a nursing career can be. 

A Passion for Preventive and Population Health 

She is especially interested in advancing preventive care and precision population health. Moving health care toward a model that is proactive rather than reactive. It’s an area she continues to explore in her teaching and scholarship. 

A Legacy of Giving Back 

Her connection to the college is also a family legacy. Her grandmother, a proud diploma nurse, established a scholarship to support future nursing students, an act of generosity that reflects her family’s commitment to the profession. 

“To help others become nurses means so much,” she shares. “We need nurses in so many ways, and I’m grateful my family can help provide that opportunity. It’s something they were incredibly proud of and something I’m proud to continue.” 

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

The college has completed its first five months in its new home with remarkable momentum, building connections, and a growing sense of community. Since opening its doors in August, the college has welcomed new and returning students, launched state-of-the-art simulation teachings, and cultivated a collaborative learning environment rooted in the Volunteer spirit. 

For many students, the new building has already transformed the nursing experience. 

“As a senior in the nursing program, the new UT Medical Nursing Building has given me something I didn’t realize I was missing, which is a true sense of community,” said senior Miana Rankin. “It is so special to finally have a place where all of us can learn, grow, and support each other under one roof.” 

A Strong Start to the Semester 

The fall semester opened with a ribbon cutting ceremony, students learning their way around, and the first classes held in the college’s advanced simulation and skills labs. By September, students had settled into routines of coursework, sim lab practice, and study groups, quickly building the supportive networks essential in nursing education. 

“I have never felt more part of a community thanks to the UT Medical Nursing Building,” shared senior Jiro Greenberg-Oster. “I see my classmates, professors, and colleagues every day pursuing their goals alongside my own.” 

A Semester of Milestones 

December marked a significant milestone as the College hosted its third pinning ceremony, the first held in the new building. The event celebrated not only the achievements of graduating students, but also the promise of a new chapter for the College of Nursing. 

“Since we have been in the new UT Medical Nursing Building, I have a renewed sense of pride,” said Takia Faniyi, Office of Student Services administrator. “Our space allows our team environment to thrive and creates a workplace that feels like home.” 

Graduate Programs assistant Katie Perry echoed that sentiment: 

“Even after being in the new building for several months, I still find myself in awe that we are finally here. Having a space for our students to experience the best education they can is rewarding in itself. It’s nice to finally have a home sweet home for nursing.” 

Students Find Their Home Base 

For many seniors finishing their final year, the new building represents both comfort and community. 

“As a senior nursing student, the timing of the new building could not have been better,” said Madison Dennis. “It’s become our home base for our final year. The place where we come together, support each other, and finish strong.” 

Others have celebrated the building’s features and its central location. 

“I absolutely love the new nursing building, especially all the different study spaces,” said Grace Li. “It has been an amazing experience utilizing the skills labs and SIM rooms. I love having all of my classes in a central location. My favorite thing is that the building faces Neyland, and when the weather is nice, I love studying on the patio.” 

Graduate clinical coordinator, Hailey Hernandez, shared her thoughts. “It’s been wonderful being in the new building. After years of being spread across campus, it’s so nice to see all your colleagues in one place. Our graduate students have come to campus twice for doctoral intensives since the building opened, and having all their classes and events in one building has led to better networking and experiences with faculty and student colleagues. Having worked in the old nursing building and our temporary space on the Hill in the Nursing Education Building, I am so excited to settle into Nursing’s forever home.” 

Looking Ahead 

The new building has already become a place where students learn, faculty lead, and the Volunteer community grows stronger every day. As the College continues to expand its programs and experiences, its new home will remain at the heart of a bright future for Tennessee’s next generation of nurses. 

“Moving into the new building has truly felt like coming home; only this time, it feels like we’re home for good. I’ve already been able to reconnect with colleagues I’d only seen a handful of times since the transition, and it’s been such a gift,” shared clinical instructor Staci Wheeler. “What I love most is seeing our students finally have a place to call their own. They bring so much joy to this space.” 

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

As we look back on 2025, the College of Nursing celebrates a year of incredible milestones, achievements, and growth. Here are the key highlights that shaped an unforgettable year:

January 

The year began with an international trip to Nyeri, Kenya. Nursing students and faculty have the opportunity to travel to Kenya each year, where they collaborate in a partnership with the WAKA Continuing Medical Education Center. Together, they work alongside local health care providers to deliver essential medical care to underserved communities. 

February

Nursing alum, Lainey Briggs, was named as a Volunteer 40 Under 40. Briggs began as an undergraduate student and recently graduated from the DNP program and is now an advanced oncology certified nurse practitioner. Briggs is dedicated to improving cancer care through leadership, innovation, and research. Her commitment extends beyond the clinic through extensive volunteer work and mentorship of future nurses as UT adjunct faculty.

March

Our global opportunities for the academic year concluded during the month of March. Nursing students and faculty traveled to Peru and Belize over spring break to blend education with service to provide health care and learn from international communities.

April

The college and several partners hosted the inaugural Great Expectations In Health Care Conference in April. Nursing students, faculty, staff and friends welcomed Algood Middle School students for a day of learning, exploration, and hands-on experiences.

May

Alumni, faculty, staff, students, and friends celebrated two large scale events in May. Alumni and friends gathered on May 6 to celebrate National Nurses Week at an alumni event. Later in the month, the college hosted its first pinning ceremony for traditional BSN students and ABSN students at the Knoxville Convention Center. Over 1,000 people gathered to celebrate this event.

June

A new partnership between the college and East Tennessee Children’s Hospital (ETCH) launched to help prepare future nurses for careers in pediatric care through an immersive, hands-on clinical training program. The Pediatric Registered Nurse (PRN) Enhancement Program offers rising senior nursing students the opportunity to gain specialized experience in pediatric care while completing their undergraduate degrees.

July

In July, the college’s research excellence took center stage. Assistant professor and family scientist Patricia Roberson was recognized for her work bridging research and clinical care, advancing solutions to Tennessee’s most pressing health challenges. Fellow faculty member Ji Yoo, assistant professor, continued her focus on improving mental health outcomes for teens statewide, helping lead TennWell, a UT System Grand Challenge initiative aimed at supporting adolescent well-being.

August

The college celebrated the milestone moment of the year with the official opening of its new building. Alumni, faculty, staff, students, and friends gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and tours of the impressive 117,000-square-foot facility. The event also marked a significant step forward in the college’s partnership with UT Medical Center, highlighted by the naming of the new home for the college: the UT Medical Nursing Building.

September

After 15 years of exceptional leadership, Victoria Niederhauser, dean of the College of Nursing, announced her plans to retire at the end of this academic year. In the same month, the College of Nursing received a transformational gift from Lisa Edwards Reed (’86) and Greg Reed (’85, ’88), establishing the Lisa and Greg Reed Endowed Dean’s Chair. This investment ensures strong leadership for the college as it continues to expand programs, increase student enrollment, and prepare the next generation of nurses to meet the growing health care demands.

October

Two alumni were honored during the UT Knoxville Alumni Awards Program. Rita Silen and G. Rumay Alexander, who were honored by the university for their service and achievements.

November

The College of Nursing was granted full accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for a 10-year term, extending through December 31, 2035. Achieving CCNE accreditation is a significant milestone that demonstrates the college’s commitment to academic quality, innovation, and continuous improvement.

December

The year ended with our December pinning ceremony. This event marked our third stand-alone pinning ceremony, this special event celebrated the second cohort of BSN Scholars and RN to BSN students. It honored their achievements in a more intimate and meaningful setting.  

As we close the chapter on 2025, we are proud of all that we have accomplished together and look forward to continuing this momentum in the new year. Thank you to our students, faculty, alumni, and supporters for making 2025 a year to remember!

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)

As a PhD-prepared nurse practitioner and gerontologist, Assistant Professor Sarah Neller brings both heart and innovation to her work.

Neller, a Nashville native and mother of three, began her nursing journey at the bedside in a cardiac intensive care unit.

“I kept seeing the same patients admitted for heart failure management,” she said. “It made me wonder what kind of care they were receiving in their communities.”

That curiosity launched a path toward advanced practice, research, and eventually a PhD.

It was Neller’s experiences in the ICU, especially the sacred moments when life-sustaining treatment was withdrawn, that lit her passion for helping patients and families communicate their hopes, values, and legacies. Her research now focuses on legacy creation as a tool to promote generativity, intergenerational connection, and well-being among older adults.

“A legacy of values is a nonlegal way for individuals to intentionally communicate emotional and supportive instruction such as values, beliefs, wisdom, and life lessons learned, that has been or is intended to be shared with family, friends, or community,” said Neller. “It’s also known as an ethical will or legacy letter. I’ve learned so much from my participants about how impactful the process of creating a legacy of values is.”

Thanks to the Allison and Patrick Harrison Nursing Innovation Award, Neller was able to present her work on legacy letters at the Gerontological Society of America’s national conference, where she also co-led a workshop on mentoring emerging researchers in the field.

“Attending the conference gave me an opportunity to connect with colleagues, share ideas, and learn new methods,” she said.

Established in 2016, the award supports innovative research and educational efforts that advance health care.

“Supporting research of the graduate- and faculty-level nurse is important for creation of new knowledge,” said Allison Harrison. “This was an area of need within the College of Nursing identified by the dean when Patrick and I made our initial pledge. The recipients and their important areas of research are impressive.”

For Neller, the support has allowed her to amplify her impact and connect her work to a broader network of scholars and practitioners.

“This research redefines legacy creation as more than an outcome of generativity. It explores its potential as a mechanism to cultivate generativity, offering a novel approach to promoting intentional living, self-growth, and intergenerational connection among older adults,” Neller added. “Through the creation of legacy letters, older adults can reflect on their values and life lessons, leaving behind a meaningful and enduring message for loved ones.”

Neller’s work continues to expand through collaborations with the University of Utah and the University of Alaska, exploring legacy creation and cultural approaches to aging well.

She brings the same spirit to her students, challenging them to think beyond clinical care and consider the impact they’ll have in every role they play as nurses.

“To the Harrison family, thank you,” Neller says. “Your generosity has not only supported my professional growth but also encouraged me to keep pursuing this meaningful work. Thank you again for believing in the next generation of nursing researchers.”

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CONTACT:

Kara Clark Cardwell ([email protected], 865-974-9498)