VCU School of Nursing Announces Endowed Inaugural Nursing Alumni Professors

The VCU School of Nursing has announced the appointment of four faculty members to the VCU School of Nursing Alumni Endowed Professorships.

Mary Jo Grap, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN; Cindy Munro, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN; Nancy McCain, D.S.N., R.N., FAAN, and Rita Pickler, Ph.D., R.N., PNP-BC, FAAN, have been selected for these positions.

“Each of these professors has made significant contributions to our school, our students and our university,” said Nancy F. Langston, Ph.D., R.N., FAAN, dean of the VCU School of Nursing. “In addition to being excellent educators, these scientists have made significant contributions to nursing research.

“Their discoveries are leading to increased understandings of biobehavioral clinical phenomena and important improvements in the care we provide to our patients and their families,” she said.

Grap is a professor in the Department of Adult Health and Nursing Systems. Her research focuses on improving outcomes in the critically ill. In 2009, she was awarded a three-year, National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) grant to study the effect of backrest elevation on skin integrity in the critically ill.

Munro is a professor in the Department of Adult Nursing Systems. She maintains an active research program in the field of oral care of critically ill patients. Currently, she is working on a $1.78 million grant through NINR to study the impact on oral care in intubated patients and incidences of pneumonia.

McCain is a professor in the Department of Adult Health and Nursing Systems. Her research focus is psychoneuroimmunology—the study of interactions between the nervous and immune systems. Currently, McCain is studying the impact of stress management in early breast cancer patients through a $3 million National Cancer Institute grant.

Pickler is the acting associate dean for research and scholarship. For the last 20 years, her research has focused on infant and maternal health, specifically feeding patterns of preterm infants. Currently, she is the principal investigator on a $1.6 million grant through the NINR to study feeding approaches for preterm infants.

The professorships were made possible through the support of alumni and friends. The fundraising effort began in 1987 with the creation of the Nursing Alumni Centennial Committee. The group was charged with generating interest in the school’s centennial and in raising funds to establish an endowed chair in nursing.

In 1988, the school established the Nursing Alumni Centennial Fund with a $50,000 bequest and fundraising began the following year. P. Buckley Moss created a painting to commemorate the centennial, “Nurses Parade.” She donated the original and prints to the committee.