Clarksville, TN – Several years ago, Austin Peay State University (APSU) received a generous gift that allowed the School of Nursing to create its first endowed professorship.
The resulting Lenora C. Reuther Chair of Excellence was established to honor top-notch professors at Austin Peay State University who enrich the school through their special areas of expertise.
Earlier this summer, Dr. Debra Rose Wilson, APSU professor of nursing, was named the next recipient of the school’s Lenora C. Reuther Chair of Excellence. Dr. Patty Orr, retired APSU nursing professor, occupied the chair for 13 years. After her retirement in 2021, the chair remained vacant while the School of Nursing conducted a national search for the next recipient.
In 2020, she won the University’s Richard M. Hawkins Award, which is presented each year to a faculty member who has demonstrated exceptional scholarly and creative behavior.
Before coming to Austin Peay State University, she was already a renowned scholar of holistic nursing and psychoneuroimmunology, with more than 100 publications, more than 100 formal presentations, and numerous keynote addresses.
While at Austin Peay State University, she has published more than 40 articles, two book chapters, and two books. She is an active peer reviewer for 10 professional journals, and she has served on the editorial boards for the Journal of Social, Behavioral, and Health Sciences and the Journal of Social Change.
The APSU School of Nursing offers two nursing education programs – the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), and a Master of Science in Nursing. For more information on the programs, visit www.apsu.edu/nursing.
