UMKC has launched a search for an inspiring and innovative leader to serve as dean of the School of Nursing and Health Studies.

The dean is the senior academic and administrative officer of the school and is responsible for providing the leadership and vision necessary for setting strategic, operational and financial directions. In those roles, the dean has overall responsibilities for developing an effective collegial environment that supports excellence in teaching, research and service.

“Preparing the next generation of nurses and health professionals is an essential mission to improving health outcomes and increasing health equity,” said UMKC Provost Jennifer Lungren. “Our new dean will pursue academic and community partnerships that enhance nursing practice, education, research and lifelong learning.”  

In addition, the dean will:

• Evaluate changes in health care, higher education and research, and lead the school in planning strategies to maximize the contributions of the faculty, students and alumni in improving health care;
• Engage in fund-raising and alumni engagement in support of opportunities to grow the school’s reputation, resources and impact;
• Build strong working relationships among the broader university, as well as external partners and stakeholders in the region; and,
• Demonstrate national and international leadership in the improvement of health care, health care policy and higher education of students in nursing and health sciences.

The search committee is chaired by Dean Russ Melchert of the UMKC School of Pharmacy. The full roster of the search committee is listed below. Others will have the opportunity to provide input during the campus interview portion of the search process. The committee aims to conclude the search by the end of the spring 2023 semester.

Full search committee

Russ Melchert, Dean and Professor, UMKC School of Pharmacy

Jamie Hunt, Teaching Associate Professor, Nursing and Health Studies and BHS Program Director

Joseph Lightner, BSPH Program Director and Assistant Professor

Cynthia Russell Lippincott, Professor, Nursing and Health Studies

Kristin Metcalf-Wilson, Assistant Research Professor and Associate Director for Clinical Training

Eduardo Abreu, Associate Professor, Nursing and Health Studies

Victor Arellano, Senior majoring in Public Health

Ashley Rivera, Roo Advising, Natural and Health Science Advisor

Chris Liu, Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development and Dean of the School of Graduate Studies

Joy Wheeler, Chief Executive Officer at Girl Scouts of NE Kansas and NW Missouri