SALT LAKE CITY – Western Governors University (WGU) has partnered with The DAISY Foundation to honor WGU nursing faculty with The DAISY Award® for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty. As a partner, WGU will be able to award faculty in its College of Health Professions with this distinguished recognition for their meaningful contributions as nurse educators.
WGU joined The DAISY Foundation in December 2019 as a means of appreciating faculty throughout the College of Health Professions for their unwavering service to students. Often, faculty are only associated with students’ academic success, but their impact exceeds those boundaries and directly shapes patient care and the nursing profession.
“The College of Health Professions is excited to join The DAISY Foundation to acknowledge and spotlight the incredible contributions of nursing faculty in inspiring and developing new practitioners, new leaders, and new educators in nursing,” said Jan Jones-Schenk, Senior Vice President and Dean of the College of Health Professions at WGU. “We deeply value our faculty and their contributions, so being able to offer this national recognition to our outstanding nursing faculty is truly meaningful for us.”
Nursing faculty can be nominated by any person including colleagues, peers, patients, family members, and alumni. A workgroup in the College of Health Professions selects and honors one faculty member per quarter who exemplifies the PETALS characteristics of The DAISY Award:
- P – Passion/Personal
- E – Empathy/Excellence/Enthusiasm
- T – Trust and Teamwork
- A – Accountable/Acts
- L – Leader/Learner
- S – Selflessness/Integrity/Student
Faculty members who are awarded The DAISY Award become lifelong honorees no matter where their careers take them. As honorees, they receive The DAISY Award of Extraordinary Faculty certificate, which reads, “To honor your exceptional impact on your students and your inspirational influence on their future.” They also receive a DAISY Faculty Award pin, a hand-carved serpentine stone sculpture titled “A Healer’s Touch,” and a spotlight on the Foundation’s website.
“In times like these, I struggle with thoughts of, ‘Am I doing enough and making the difference I wanted to make when I became a registered nurse?’” said Jamie State, Manager of Program Faculty at WGU and the university’s first recipient of The DAISY Award. “Being a DAISY Award honoree at WGU is a humbling honor that allows me to realize that I am making a difference.”
The DAISY Foundation created The DAISY Award of Extraordinary Nursing Faculty to honor nurse educators for their role in influencing nursing students and teaching them the importance of compassionate care. The nationally recognized Foundation currently partners with over 4,300 healthcare facilities and schools of nursing, continuously helping recognize and honor nurses who are “just doing their job.”
To learn more about The DAISY Award, visit https://www.daisyfoundation.org/student-faculty-awards/about-daisy-faculty-award.
