Nursing dean takes national leadership post

Anne Thomas, dean of UIndy’s School of Nursing, has begun a two-year term as president-elect of the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties.

NONPF is a global network of educators devoted to promoting quality nurse practitioner education, setting standards and guiding curriculum development nationally and internationally. Thomas has been an active member since 1995 and will serve two years as president after her current term ends.

As an adult/gerontological nurse practitioner for 27 years, Thomas has worked in rural primary care as well as occupational and mental health care settings, and she has received several awards for her work in developing and implementing nurse-managed clinics. She has held academic leadership positions at the University of Texas at Arlington, Indiana State University and the University of Michigan. She also served as a research director at the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute for Nursing Research. In 2012, she was inducted to the Fellows of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

Thomas joined the UIndy faculty full-time in 2008, was named dean in 2010 and has overseen the launch of several new degree programs, often in partnership with local hospitals and healthcare systems. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from the University of Texas at Arlington and a Ph.D. from Texas Women’s University.

UIndy has educated nurses since 1959 and offers a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree as well as several innovative Master of Science in Nursing specialties, including Family Nurse Practitioner, Adult/Gerontological Nurse Practitioner, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner, Neonatal Nurse Practitioner, Nurse-Midwifery, Nursing Education and Nursing & Health Systems Leadership. More information is available at www.uindy.edu/nursing.