The following UNMC College of Nursing staff and faculty members were recently honored for their work:
Haley Hays, DNP, was awarded the Outstanding Rural Health Practitioner Award. The award recognizes individuals who provide patient care and strive to improve health services in rural Nebraska. Factors taken into consideration include providing outstanding care, collaboration and multi-disciplinary teamwork, involvement in the community, involvement in education and lasting contribution to the rural health care system.
Stephanie Burge, DNP, received the American Association of Nurse Practitioners’ 2025 State Award for Outstanding Contributions. The award recognizes nurse practitioners who excel in the areas of advance accessible, person-centered, equitable, high-quality health care for diverse communities through practice, education, advocacy, research and leadership (PEARL).
Bailey Hendricks, PhD, was selected the winner of Cancer Nursing’s Annual Research Award for 2025 for her research article, “Oncology’s Silent Caregivers: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of the Experiences, Outcomes, and Unmet Needs of Caregiving Youth of a Parent With Cancer,” published in Cancer Nursing 48(3) May/June 2025.
Angela Johnson, EdD, was awarded a Presidential Challenge Coin by University of Nebraska Systems President Jeffrey P. Gold, MD. Dr. Johnson received the coin following a visit by President Gold to the Northern Division in which he noted Dr. Johnson’s hard work building a future nursing workforce and supporting the UNMC and Norfolk communities. The challenge coin is one of the highest recognitions of the NU system.
Tiffany Moore, PhD, with collaborators from the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s counseling department (Ashley Blount [PI], Abby Bjornsen-Ramig and Kara Schneider) and Gurudutt Pendyala, PhD, of UNMC Anesthesiology, recently received for a $100,000 FY2026 NU Collaboration grant titled “Impact of Biopsychosocial Psychotherapy Intervention on Maternal Life-Course Trauma and the Gut Microbiome.”
The project will generate preliminary data for future external funding around the following goals:
- Aim 1: Clinical Model: Evaluate effects of therapeutic intervention on the gut microbiome and maternal risk factors along the biopsychosocial continuum.
- Aim 2: Basic Model: Characterize if chronic stress during pregnancy exacerbates maternal inflammation and dysregulates the gut microbiome.
Jenni Petross was the August 2025 recipient of the UNMC Silver U Award. Her nominator wrote: “This year we have had a lot of changes. We are in the middle of a curriculum change while also beginning with twice yearly enrollment. We have cohorts that range from 15-55, which has led to some creative scheduling for faculty, clinicals and rooms. Not to mention countless students and faculty that require onboarding to “My Clinical Exchange.” At the center managing all of these moving parts is our Jenni…and she does it with a smile.”
Gamma Pi at-Large Chapter (#086) has been selected as a recipient of the 2023–2025 Chapter Key Award from Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing (Sigma). The honor recognizes chapters that demonstrate excellence in membership engagement, leadership development and overall chapter operations. The Chapter Key Award is one of the highest honors bestowed by Sigma Theta Tau International. As part of this recognition, Gamma Pi at-Large will be honored during Sigma’s 48th Biennial Convention in Indianapolis in November.
Joachim Voss, PhD, associate dean for academic programs, and a team consisting of Cathrin Carithers, DNP, Angela Johnson, EdD, Heidi Keeler, PhD and Teresa Hultquist, PhD, were notified that they have been awarded a new HRSA grant. The grant will provide support for the Rural Nebraska Nursing Fellowship, which aims to increase the number of BSN-prepared nurses with a preference for first-generation and under-represented nursing students in rural Nebraska through a combination of targeted outreach, support and mentoring efforts at three rural campuses at the UNMC College of Nursing.
Douglass Haas, DNP, Haley Hays, DNP and Melissa Florell, PhD, completed the 2025 NurseTRUST E3 fellowship program. The eight month program focuses on six key competencies to enhance leadership abilities: self-awareness, learning agility, communication, political savvy, influencing outcomes and motivating others. The trio joins Jill Reed, PhD, and Rebecca Swanson, DNP, as UNMC College of Nursing faculty who have completed the fellowship.
Brandon Varilek, PhD, was named a 2025 Hillman Emergent Innovation: Serious Illness and End of Life grantee. He is the principal investigator for “Community-Based Approach to Palliative Care for American Indian Adults with End-Stage Kidney Disease.” The High School for Excellence and Innovation program, along with the Hillman Emergent Innovation program, is a grant program from the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation to support early-stage, pre-evidence innovations in care.