Jenny O'Rourke

Interim Dean and Associate Professor

Health Sciences Campus

I am honored to serve as Interim Dean of the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health. I have served Loyola University since 2016, in my role as the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs in the Parkinson School from 2023 to 2026 and as Associate Dean for Graduate Programs for the Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing from 2016 to 2020. From 2004 to 2016, I was faculty at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Nursing where I was the inaugural director of the Center for Simulation and Program Director for the Adult Nurse Practitioner program.

My area of scholarship focuses on best practices in nursing education, including the use of simulation for teaching and system change. I am an international fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and the National League for Nursing, Academy of Nursing Education (ANEF).

Education

BS in Nursing, Villanova University
MS in Nursing, University of Illinois at Chicago
PhD, University of Illinois at Chicago

What called you to or attracted you to Loyola?

The mission of the Jesuit tradition of living within a diverse community and making a commitment to social justice. The relationships I have built within the Loyola community, across disciplines, are an asset to my work each day.