From the Dean

As supporters and alumni of the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, you understand the power of nursing to drive change within health care and positively impact patients’ lives.

I am proud of the accomplishments of our outstanding students, faculty, and staff in the past year and the leadership they show in advancing health care for all—and particularly their determination to address the social determinants of health that hinder wellness for the most vulnerable.

Our donors are an integral part of these efforts, and their partnership inspires us as we strive toward achieving the central goal outlined in our “why” statement about our commitment to our students, patients, and community: “To build relationships so lives are positively transformed.”

The last year has been a time of growth and renewal within Loyola Nursing, and the sense of energy and momentum at both our Lake Shore and Health Science campuses is palpable. Consider the following:

• Associate Dean for Innovative Partnerships and Faculty Practice Mary McNamara is strengthening long standing community partnerships such as our School-Based Health Center at Proviso East High School, while establishing new ones with organizations like BEDS Plus, which works to prevent homelessness. Meanwhile, innovative models offer expanded opportunities for faculty practice.
• Loyola Nursing was recently ranked by U.S. News & World Report among the top 5 percent of undergraduate nursing programs nationally for the third year in a row. Rankings are critical to our reputation and success, and our high national standing speaks to the strength of our Bachelor of Science in Nursing program.
• Our Inclusive Excellence program is expanding and attracting national attention under the leadership of Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence Dian Squire. This fall we received the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award for Health Professions Schools in recognition of our commitment to diversity and inclusion. We held our first Inclusive Excellence Day conference in September, drawing student, faculty, and staff participants from across Loyola and other institutions.
• We continue to deeply invest in research, hiring five tenure-track faculty in the past two years alone. Leading our research team is Associate Dean for Research and Scholarly Innovation Karen Saban, who received a $3.3 million National Institutes of Health research grant in 2023 to study an initiative to reduce race-based stress in Black women at risk for cardiovascular disease. Her work is a testament to the very real, life-changing impact we seek to have on the communities we serve at home in Chicago and nationally.
• Growing our research program is a key strategic priority for Loyola Nursing as we seek to increase our national standing and attract the brightest students to our graduate programs, and I could not be prouder of the work our talented nurse scientists are doing.

I invite you to read more in the following pages about the impact of our groundbreaking research and commitment to academic and clinical excellence. I am grateful to the students who inspire me with their passion for learning and for creating a healthier, more equitable world; to our faculty and staff and their dedication to our students; to our community partners who play an essential role in preparing our students for nursing practice; and to our donors who support our transformational work.

As friends of Loyola Nursing, you understand the power of nursing to change lives—including those of our students, who will enter a rapidly changing profession and become frontline health care providers while navigating an increasingly complex health care system. So many of you have stepped up to provide scholarships that enable young talent to seek a university education, and your investment in their future encourages them to be the best they can be. I appreciate your generosity in investing in scholarships, research, and other programs that support our students and our overall mission.

Many thanks to all of you who are a part of our exceptional Loyola Nursing community.

Warm regards,

Lorna Finnegan, PhD, RN, FNP, FAAN
Dean and Professor, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing