| |
1st
appeared 17 June 1999
Reunion Celebrates Nursing Accomplishments and
Outgoing Dean
The UCSF School of Nursing held its first-ever doctoral reunion earlier this month, giving
the faculty and its alumni an opportunity not only to celebrate their many accomplishments
but also to honor Jane Norbeck, who will end her tenure as dean at the end of June.
 Over 150 alumni attended the reunion, which
included talks by Chancellor Mike Bishop, Norbeck, and Angela Barron McBride, dean of the
Indiana University School of Nursing. The reunion also included scholarly presentations,
the awarding of the first-ever Styles International Scholarship, and a farewell dinner for
Norbeck.
UCSF began its doctoral program in 1965 -- the first such program in the West -- offering
a Doctor of Nursing Science (DNS) degree. The PhD in Nursing program began in 1984, and
was offered in addition to the DNS program, which ceased being offered in the early 1990s.
In total, the School has produced 350 doctoral graduates.
"I, for one, admire what she's (Norbeck) done and regret the fact that we won't be
working together in that sense in the future," said Chancellor Bishop, who in the
reunion's introductory remarks on the morning of June 5 described the School of Nursing as
a "place of outstanding teaching." He also commended the school for its
"pioneering, even avant-garde" spirit and acknowledged its "influence
around the world in terms of international health."
McBride, who gave the keynote address titled "Breakthroughs in Nursing Education:
Looking Back, Looking Forward," described Norbeck as "enormously respected in
psychiatric nursing." She also recognized UCSF's Patricia Benner and Margretta Madden
Styles as two of the "top-ten breakthrough educators" in past the 25 years, and
applauded the school's commitment to cultural competence in care.
Styles, dean of the School of Nursing from 1977 to 1987, presented the first-ever Styles
International Scholarship to Aeran Cho, from Korea, who is a doctoral student in the Dept.
of Physiological Nursing. Styles said the scholarship was created because international
students are ineligible for many of the scholarships available to American students.
Later that same evening, UCSF alumni, faculty and administrators from throughout the
campus acknowledged Norbeck's accomplishments at a dinner held in her honor. Haile Debas,
dean of the School of Medicine and former chancellor, spoke about his friendship with
Norbeck.
"Jane has been a wonderful friend and colleague," Debas said. "I could
always count on her advice and support. She is a person of enormous poise, vision and
leadership."
Debas used the occasion to announce a new endowment of $1 million from the Osher
Foundation to create Osher Scholarships for needy students in the School of Nursing, which
he described as "one of the most recent fruits of her (Norbeck's) untiring efforts to
garner support for the School of Nursing."
Marylin Dodd, who is associate dean of academic affairs and will be acting dean until a
permanent replacement is found, set the theme for the evening: "Jane Norbeck,
#1." Reasons Dodd cited for Norbeck's preeminent status included: the UCSF School of
Nursing achieved #1 status nationally in 1998 for NIH research funding; the master's
program ranks #1 in national surveys for primary care and clinical specialties; and
graduates achieve the very highest appointments nationally and internationally.
"Her approach merged quiet wisdom, meticulous documentation, analytic insight, and
gentle humor. This approach worked with great success," read the invitation to the
dinner celebration.
Also at the reunion, Norbeck summed up the school's accomplishments, including the
creation of the master's entry program, which this year doubled in size, thanks to
scholarship funding from UCSF Stanford Health Care. She also discussed the challenges
facing future deans, including declining enrollment nationwide and at UCSF and the need
for a comprehensive distance learning program.
Norbeck will end her tenure as dean on the last day of June, when she will be
"stepping up," as she says, from the 3rd to 5th floor of the Nursing building.
After vacationing in Botswana and Zimbabwe in July and taking a year-long sabbatical,
Norbeck will return to teaching and research as a professor in the Department of Community
Health Systems.
Links:
UCSF School of Nursing
Norbeck to Step Down as
Nursing Dean
Source: Paula Murphy, Daybreak
editor |
