Congratulations to our admitted and graduating Master of Professional Nursing (MPN) students, and to all Penn Nursing students who will be honored tomorrow at our 2026 Commencement!
As we celebrate these exciting milestones, we are also proud to share that the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) officially granted the MPN program full accreditation through June 30, 2031, extending from our December 2025 graduates to our future cohorts. This accreditation reflects the strength, rigor, and excellence of this program offered here at the world's No.1 nursing school.
This recognition is a testament to the extraordinary dedication of our faculty, staff, clinical partners, and students. We look forward to celebrating the next generation of Penn Nursing leaders as they begin shaping the future of health care. #PennNursing #PennGrad #NursingEducation #Commencement2026
We are proud to announce Penn Nursing’s 2026 Alumni Award winners!
Seven distinguished alumni and one graduating undergraduate student have been selected for this year’s honors, recognizing their outstanding contributions to nursing, healthcare, and their communities.
Award recipients will be celebrated on May 15, 2026, during Alumni Weekend, alongside this year’s student and faculty award winners. Learn more about this year’s inspiring honorees:
🔗 https://bit.ly/4mnCR9x
#PennNursing #PennAlumni #NursingLeadership #HealthcareInnovation
In 2000, the Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing helped to create "The Nightingale’s Song," an exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art featuring posters and artistic images of nursing. The exhibit brought nursing history into public view through art, culture, and storytelling.
As part of Bates at 40: Milestones in Nursing History, we’re celebrating the milestones that
have shaped the Bates Center over four decades. Through archives, exhibitions, fellowships, and scholarships, the Bates Center continues to preserve nursing history and share its impact with new generations. https://bit.ly/4emuI32
#BatesAt40 #PennNursing #NursingHistory #HistoryOfNursing #BatesCenter
Through tomorrow, we are formally honoring the many ways nursing makes a difference, from everyday acts of care to lifelong impact in patients’ lives. Penn Nursing is grateful for the students, educators, nurses, scholars, and care teams whose compassion and commitment help define the profession and inspire the next generation. We are proud to celebrate Nurses Week with all of you.
#NursesWeek2026 #PennNursing
A powerful conversation on leadership, philanthropy, and the future of nursing.
During his recent visit to Penn Nursing, William P. Lauder, W’83, Chair of the Board of Directors of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc., joined Penn Nursing Dean Antonia Villarruel for a fireside chat on the vision and impact of the Leonard A. Lauder Community Care Nurse Practitioner Program.
Their discussion highlighted how the historic $125 million investment by his father, Leonard A. Lauder, is preparing the next generation of primary care nurse leaders to expand access to high-quality health care.
Lauder, a University of Pennsylvania Trustee Emeritus, also connected with L.A. Lauder Fellows, faculty, staff, and community partners, sharing insights on leadership as something lived daily and shaped through action, teaching, and care for others. In a moment defined by complexity and change, his insights were especially powerful.
Learn more about Penn Nursing’s work in underserved communities: https://www.nursing.upenn.edu/lal-community-care-np-fellowship/
#PennNursing #NursingLeadership #HealthEquity #FutureOfHealthcare
We proudly celebrate National Nurses Week 2026, recognizing the extraordinary impact nurses have on healthcare—and the real challenges they navigate every day.
Nurses Week is a time to recognize the science, humanity, and trust at the center of nursing. At Penn Nursing, we are proud to celebrate the people who lead with care, support patients and families, and continue building a stronger future for health care through education, practice, research, and service.
#NursesWeek2026 #PennNursing #ThePowerOfNurses #PennNursing #NursingLeadership #HealthcareHeroes
In Case You Missed It: 2026 Penn Nursing Innovation Accelerator Pitch Event
Penn Nursing hosted the 2026 Innovation Accelerator Pitch Event on April 15, a dynamic virtual gathering where students, faculty, and healthcare innovators presented bold, creative solutions to improve health and advance equity. The event spotlighted the continued momentum of the program, with our 2025 winners sharing updates on their progress, followed by compelling pitches from this year’s finalists. Each team presented to a panel of expert judges for the opportunity to join the Penn Nursing Innovation Accelerator, which provides funding, mentorship, and critical support for early-stage healthcare innovations.
We were also honored to feature an inspiring keynote from Dr. Anthony Esposito, Chief Nursing Officer at St. Joseph Hospital, alongside live sketching by Rachael Acker of Healthero, who captured the energy and ideas of the event in real time.
Watch the full recording here: https://bit.ly/496VPM7
#PennNursing #InnovationInHealthcare #HealthEquity #NursingLeadership #HealthcareInnovation
The power of nurses lies in the commitment you bring to your work every day.
During National Nurses Week, Dean Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD., RN, FAAN, encourages our community to take a moment to recognize its own impact as nurses and to lift up those around us to honor nursing’s history and strengthen nursing’s future.
Join @NINR during #NationalNursesWeek for the launch of its Early-Stage Investigator Lecture Series, highlighting emerging leaders in nursing science. The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) is part of the National Institutes of Health and leads federal efforts to advance nursing science.
The inaugural lecture will feature @PennNursing Assistant Professor Dr. Jane Muir, whose research focuses on advancing nursing models of care to improve access and outcomes in community-based settings.
📅 May 7 | ⏰ 2 PM ET
🎓 Continuing Education Units available
Register here: https://bit.ly/4dNTo4w
#PennNursing #NursingResearch #HealthEquity #NursesWeek #NINR
As part of Bates at 40: Milestones in Nursing History, we’re celebrating the moments that have shaped the Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing over four decades. In 1993, the first issue of Nursing History Review was published with Joan Lynaugh as editor. The journal became a major platform for scholarship in the history of nursing and helped shape the field for decades to come. Through archives, exhibitions, fellowships, and scholarships, the Bates Center continues to preserve nursing history and share its impact with new generations.
https://bit.ly/4emuI32
#BatesAt40 #PennNursing #NursingHistory #HistoryOfNursing#BatesCenter
Please join us in congratulating Dr. Amanda Bettencourt on her promotion to Associate Professor of Nursing with tenure, effective July 1, 2026.
Since joining Penn Nursing in 2021, Dr. Bettencourt has become a nationally and internationally recognized leader in implementation science, advancing patient safety, care quality, and healthy work environments across burn, pediatric, and acute care settings. Her research bridges rigorous methodology with clinical expertise, influencing national guidelines, informing global policy, and strengthening the implementation of evidence-based practice.
A highly accomplished scholar, Dr. Bettencourt has authored more than 40 publications in leading journals. Her work has shaped burn care standards, contributed to national conversations on nurse staffing and outcomes, and informed policy discussions cited by organizations such as the OECD. This year, she was also named a Fulbright Specialist, partnering internationally to advance the implementation of advanced practice nursing roles.
An exceptional educator and mentor, Dr. Bettencourt leads implementation science education at Penn and beyond, and was recognized with the 2025 Dean’s Award for Distinguished Teaching. She also brings outstanding service and leadership, including serving as President of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) and contributing to national burn care policy and standards. In 2025, she was inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. Dr. Bettencourt’s impact across scholarship, teaching, leadership, and service continues to shape the future of nursing.
We are proud to celebrate this well-deserved milestone. #PennNursing #NursingLeadership #ImplementationScience #HealthCareInnovation
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month – May 1
The leadership that Asian American/Pacific Islander students, nurses, & educators bring to health care builds a stronger health care system for everyone. Penn Nursing celebrates that excellence as we partner for every patient. Every family. Every community. #AAPIHeritageMonth #PennNursing
