Spring 08
Vol. 15/ No. 1

Wise Words

Road trip :

A journey via foot or automobile, sometimes unplanned or impromptu, thus encompassing any journey by automobile, regardless of stops en route.

~Wikipedia

Dear alumni, friends and colleagues,

With the exception of introducing you to the new dean in the fall issue, this will be my last column in Mizzou Nursing. After nine years, I will step down as the leader of this fantastic school of nursing on Aug. 31. I will also be retiring from a 29 year tenure at the University of Missouri.

I built upon the strengths of the former deans as well as the faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends. My personality has always been that of a reader, listener and observer. Those traits have served me well in this leadership role.

As part of an Association of American Universities institution, I thought of ways we could achieve excellence in teaching and research. Steps were taken prior to, and by, me and then with the right combination of our faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends we have leapt to where we are today.

We are currently No. 3 in the nation in faculty productivity. The competition for research funds is fierce, and this ranking is viewed by many as a determination of research excellence. This surge into the national limelight is led by Associate Dean Vicki Conn. Her vision has been unwavering and I'm a staunch supporter of her efforts. Vicki was also chosen as the Western Journal of Nursing Research editor last year.

Our research success was possible because of the strong and continuously improving academic team we have in place. The faculty, with leadership provided by Drs. McDaniel (BSN and MS programs) and Libbus (PhD), continuously realize their vision of sending well-educated professional nurses into the workforce by the high employment rates.

And last, but not least, the School also has the best staff. Without these dedicated individuals being the consummate professionals they are, the faculty could not achieve their goals.

In addition to those of us working “in house,” we have also seen a significant rise in support from our alums and friends. To each of you, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

I love this School and University, and my passion was to make it the best it could be. I believe the School has achieved the goals we set. However there are new benchmarks to set and goals to achieve, but I know this group of professionals can achieve anything they set their minds to.

With warm regards,

Rosemary T. Porter, PhD, RN
Dean, MU Sinclair School of Nursing