At the Duke University School of Nursing, we’re proud of our 2017 accomplishments and we’re looking forward to a productive 2018.

First, we’d like to thank our faculty, staff, students, alumni and community partners for their hard work and dedication that helped us have another remarkable year. Here’s a look back at our year.

We have successfully completed year one of our 2016-2020 Strategic Plan. More than 100 of our faculty, staff, students and Duke University Health System partners participated in the first year’s implementation. It’s rewarding to see the hard work and dedication that each of you have shown to our strategic focus areas ensuring our contribution to the transformation of the nursing profession.

We are extremely proud to have achieved several high rankings in the 2018 editions of U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools and Best Online Programs. We were ranked:

• #1 Graduate Nursing School in the nation by U.S. News & World Report
• #1 Doctor of Nursing Practice program.

In other rankings, also achieved:

• #2 Nursing School for Nurse Practitioner in Pediatric and Primary Care Education
• #3 Best Online Program for Nursing
• #3 Best Nursing School for Nurse Anesthesia Education
• #3 Best Nursing School for Nursing Informatics Education
• #4 Best Nursing School for Nurse Practitioner: Family Education
• #5 Best Nursing School for Nurse Practitioner: Adult-Gerontology and Acute Care Education

In January, the Center for Nursing Discovery received a five-year accreditation by the Society for Simulation in Healthcare and the Council for Accreditation of Healthcare Simulation Program in the area of Teaching/Education. We are the only nursing school in North Carolina and one of three in the United States to have received this accreditation.

We also received a third designation as a National Center of Excellence in Nursing Education by the National League for Nursing in Advancing the Science of Nursing education. In addition to this third designation, we also continue to hold designations in the categories of Enhancing Student Learning and Professional Development and Promoting Pedagogical Expertise of Faculty.

Other notable accolades from 2017:

DUSON was recognized as a Best Nursing School for Men in Nursing by the American Assembly for Men in Nursing for the third year!

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda, PhD, MPH, RN, CPH, FAAN was awarded $3.4 million by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to provide resources to improve the health and well-being of young adult Latino immigrants. Her grant will fund research surrounding stress and resilience in the Durham area Hispanic immigrant population.

The Business Development Office developed and released TAMS: A New Teaching Assignment Software to help decrease the burden of course scheduling. A unique software on the market, this product is perfect for schools that are looking for a solution to their course scheduling headaches.

Earlier this year, inaugural Business Development Office scholarships were awarded to four students throughout multiple programs. These scholarships were created in late 2015 to identify and facilitate partnership opportunities for DUSON with private, public and academic organizations, as well as expand scholarship support and program development.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg of our greatest accomplishments. As we reflect and celebrate this season, we are truly thankful and proud. And we look forward with anticipation to the opportunities that we – as a family and a community – will share in 2018.

We encourage you to take time to reflect and celebrate this holiday season. And here’s to wishing you and yours a peaceful and relaxing holiday season and a Happy New Year!