The University of Pittsburgh has a new dean for its school of nursing.
University officials announced Friday that Christine Kasper, a registered nurse who served the past four years as dean of the University of New Mexico’s College of Nursing, will assume the role, effective Jan. 1, 2023.
Ms. Kasper will succeed Jacqueline Dunbar-Jacob, registered nurse and Dean and Distinguished Service Professor of Nursing, whom Pitt officials credited with helping over 21 years to position Pitt Nursing among the nation’s top nursing schools. She announced last year her intent to retire after 30 years with the university
“Dr. Kasper has been chosen from a pool of exceptionally qualified leaders identified through a national search,” said Dr. Anantha Shekhar, MD, senior vice chancellor for the Health Sciences and dean of the School of Medicine. “I believe Dr. Kasper is superbly qualified to lead Pitt’s School of Nursing on a continued path of success, and I look forward to working with her closely.”
Currently, Ms. Kasper heads a nursing college of roughly 1,100 students, one that has grown 35% over the prior three years, Pitt officials said in a statement announcing the appointment.
Prior to that, she was a senior nurse executive in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Nursing Services, according to the university. In that job, she advised the chief nursing officer on academics, research and policy. She also was a professor in the Daniel K. Inouye Graduate School of Nursing at Uniformed Services University of the health sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.
“I am mindful of the unique and essential role that a highly ranked and world-class major research university such as the University of Pittsburgh plays in its mission as a model public university serving the state, the nation, and international communities,” said Kasper said in the statement.
Ms. Kasper edits the Annual Review of Nursing Research and was the founding editor of Biological Research for Nursing. She has more than 200 national and international peer-reviewed and invited publications, books and presentations to her credit
Ms. Kasper received a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Evansville, a master’s degree in nursing from Rush University, and a doctorate at the University of Michigan, where she studied nursing and exercise physiology. She was a professor at institutions including the University of Wisconsin-Madison and UCLA and also held the M. Adelaide Nutting Research Chair at Johns Hopkins University.
