URIs_MOMENTUM_Research_and_Innovation_Magazine_Fall_2024_Mel

BUILDING A ROBUST

ENVIRONMENT to Support Nursing Research and Education at URI’s College of Nursing

written by MOLLY STEVENS ‘20

“We nurses are collaborative, science based, humanistic, caring, compassionate practitioners.” - Danny Willis

Danny Willis, the newly appointed dean of the College of Nursing, brings with him a wealth of experience and a vision for advancing nursing education, research, and practice-based knowledge development at the University of Rhode Island (URI). “We nurses are collaborative, science-based, humanistic, caring, compassionate practitioners,”

Willis says. “We combine knowledge of science and theory with the art of understanding pattern, being present, facilitating healing, and—a substantive knowledge base and skill set that no one else can really bring in quite the same way.” Looking ahead, Willis envisions evolution in nursing inquiry and research funding, particularly from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and

other federal sources. He also advocates for state-of the-art facilities for research faculty and collaborative workspaces, like innovation hubs and active learning classrooms for students. Central to his vision for the college’s future is building a robust environment and infrastructure to support nursing research and teaching. He emphasizes the

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