Conway-Welch awarded third honorary degree
Colleen Conway-Welch, Ph.D., dean of the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing, has received her third honorary degree, this one from the University of Colorado.
The doctorate of humanities was awarded during commencement ceremonies in May for their Health Sciences Center.
"Both from the perspective of a nurse and a nurse midwife, it's a wonderful honor," Conway-Welch said. "It's also a tribute to the School of Nursing and the medical center, which provided me with the environment and support to do the kind of work on a national level that merits this kind of recognition."
Conway-Welch received her first honorary degree from Cumberland University in Lebanon, where she has worked extensively with the president of the school on a variety of nursing and health care issues. Her second honorary degree was from Georgetown University, where she received her bachelor's degree in Nursing.
Prior to coming to Vanderbilt in 1984, Conway-Welch served as the director of the Nurse-Midwifery Graduate Program and professor of Nursing at the University of Colorado.
She adds this degree to other awards, honors and appointments she has received during her career, including her appointment to the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare in 1998 and her election to the Institute of Medicine in 1997.
Conway-Welch holds a master's degree in Nursing from Catholic University, a certificate in nurse-midwifery from the Catholic Maternity Institute in Santa Fe, N.M. and a Ph.D. in nursing from New York University.