Speakers

Carol F. Durham, EdD, MSN, RN, ANEF, FAAN 
Professor Emeritus
University of North Carolina School of Nursing

Dr. Carol Durham is Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing. Over her 45-year tenure, she served as Director of the Education–Innovation–Simulation Learning Environment, overseeing skill acquisition and simulation-based learning across prelicensure and graduate nursing programs. She has also held multiple leadership roles within the School of Nursing, including Faculty Chair and the Inaugural Director of Interprofessional Education & Practice.

Dr. Durham is recognized as a national and international leader in the fields of quality and safety, simulation and interprofessional education. A past President of the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL), she collaborated with the National Council of State Boards of Nursing and other experts to establish simulation guidelines for nursing programs. As a member of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) project, Dr. Durham’s work has had a sustained impact on preparing faculty to integrate quality, safety, and evidence-based pedagogy into their teaching.

She is a contributor to the AACN Essentials Assessment Expert Working Group and chairs the AACN Essentials Scenario Working Group, leading national efforts to integrate simulation as a methodology for coaching students to meet the AACN Essentials.  

Dr. Durham continues to support prelicensure students in developing strong clinical reasoning and judgment skills through robust case-based learning and situated coaching/debriefing. She has an extensive record of publications and is frequently invited to present nationally and internationally on simulation and healthcare education.

Her contributions have been recognized with numerous awards, including the 2023 Society for Simulation in Healthcare Director of the Year, INACSL’s 2018 “Spirit of Simulation” Leadership Excellence Award, the 2017 Presidentia l Citation from the Society for Simulation in Healthcare, and the 2025 DAISY Lifetime Achievement Award. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN), the National League for Nursing Academy of Nursing Education (ANEF), and the Society for Simulation in Healthcare Academy (FSSH). 

Jennifer T. Alderman, PhD, MSN, RN, CNL, CNE, CHSE, NEA-BC 
Clinical Professor & Interprofessional Education and Practice Director
UNC Chapel Hill School of Nursing

Dr. Jennifer T. Alderman is a Clinical Professor and Director of Interprofessional Education and Practice at the UNC Chapel Hill School of Nursing, where she has been a faculty member for over 15 years. As Interprofessional Education and Practice (IPEP) Director of the school, she works to ensure that IPE and simulation are integrated across programs and properly leveled across the curriculum. Dr. Alderman and colleagues have presented nationally and internationally about simulation outcomes, including the impact of virtual simulation on the clinical judgment in pre-licensure nursing students. She has published in the Journal of Interprofessional Care and the Journal of Nursing Care Quality, co-authored book chapters on simulation in Quality and Safety in Nursing: A Competency Approach to Improving Outcomes (3rd ed.), Clinical Simulation in Nursing: From Conceptualization to Evaluation (3rd ed.), Reflective Practice: Reimagining Ourselves, Reimagining Nursing (3rd ed.), and

The Nexus between Nursing and Patient Safety and has given over 25 presentations at national and international conferences over the past decade. Dr. Alderman is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, American Nurses Association, North Carolina Nurses Association, and a lifetime member of the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL). Dr. Alderman chaired INACSL's Membership Engagement Committee where she worked on webinars, national conference planning, and served as the inaugural season one host of the Let’s Talk Sim podcast.   

Leah Burt, PhD, APRN-FPA, ANP-BC, CHSE, FAANP
Clinical Assistant Professor  
Director, Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Program
Director of Simulation Assessment & Research, M. Christine Schwartz Experiential Learning & Simulation Laboratory
University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing

Dr. Leah Burt is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Program at the University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing, as well as Director of Simulation Research in the College of Nursing's M. Christine Schwartz Experiential Learning and Simulation Laboratory. After completing her PhD in Nursing Science with a focus on diagnostic reasoning, Dr. Burt engaged in postdoctoral training as a Fellow in Diagnostic Excellence through the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine as well as postdoctoral training in simulation education and research. She is a current Josiah Macy Jr. Foundation Faculty Scholar. A Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator, Dr. Burt’s scholarship blends expertise in educational design with mixed methodology research to discover evidence-based ways to assess and enhance learner competency through innovative simulation. Dr. Burt collaborates with nurse practitioner educators across the country and her leadership has been honored with the Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine’s Emerging Leader Rising Star Award, the Barbara Berger Excellence in Teaching Award, and the DAISY Faculty Award for extraordinary educational contributions.

Mindi Anderson, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC, CNE, CHSOS, CHSE-A, ANEF, FSSH, FAAN 
Associate Dean for Simulation and Immersive Learning
Professor
Director for Healthcare Simulation Program 
University of Central Florida

Dr. Mindi Anderson is an early pioneer in healthcare simulation education who is today one of the world’s foremost experts in the field. She is the inaugural and current program director of the Healthcare Simulation graduate program at the UCF College of Nursing. Anderson’s research, which includes virtual and game-based simulation, new simulation technologies, standardized patients, interprofessional education using simulation and use of simulation in preparing students for nursing practice, has been widely published and presented both nationally and internationally. Her findings over the last 14 years have advanced nursing science and helped to establish best practices in healthcare simulation education. In addition, Anderson is part of an interdisciplinary team at UCF that has been issued two patents on advances in simulation and training.

Speakers

Virginia Reising, DNP, RN, PHNA-BC
Associate Professor and Associate Chairperson
Rush University, College of Nursing

Dr. Virginia Reising is an Associate Professor and Associate Chairperson at Rush University in the Department of Community, Systems, and Mental Health Nursing where she teaches at the Masters and Doctoral level. She previously worked in the College of Nursing at University of Illinois Chicago where she served as Interim Associate Dean for Practice and Partnerships, Associate Department Head, and the primary investigator on a HRSA Behavioral Health Integration Collaborative Agreement which supported the implementation of an integrated model of behavioral health care at a nurse-led health federally qualified health center and community correctional setting.

Dr. Reising completed her Master of Nursing degree at Rush University with a concentration in advanced population health nursing and her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree at the University of Illinois Chicago. Her clinical experience spans hospital, primary care, and school settings. In 2018, she was named an Illinois Nurses Foundation 40 under 40 Emerging Nurse Leader and in 2022, she was named a Pinnacle Nurse Leader.

Kristin Ashford, PhD, WHNP-BC, FAAN
Associate Dean of Undergraduate Faculty & Interprofessional Education Affairs
Good Samaritan Professor for Community Nursing
University of Kentucky College of Nursing

Dr. Kristin Ashford is a professor at the University of Kentucky College of Nursing where she serves as the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs and Health Policy. As a fellow of the Center for Interdisciplinary Heath Education, she has led curricular transformation including integration of cognates and microcredentials. Presently, she drives innovative, impactful state-academic and community partnerships to transform healthcare for perinatal and parenting women as the Good Samaritan Endowed Chair of Community Nursing. She ha s led the creation of two perinatal substance use treatment (SUD) programs that bridge gaps and advance healthcare in SUD treatment for perinatal women.

As founder and Director of the Perinatal Research and Wellness Center, Ashford leads an interprofessional team to translate research into practice while informing policy makers on maternal and child health issues. She recently completed the Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship in Washington DC, serving as a health policy fellow on the U.S. Committee for Energy and Commerce, Health subcommittee. Dr. Ashford received her BS at Washburn University in Kansas and completed her training as a board-certification Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner at the University of Louisville. She further completed her PhD and NIH postdoctoral fellowship and the Wharton Executive Nursing Leadership program.

Speakers

Gerry Altmiller, EdD, APRN, ACNS-BC, ANEF, FAAN
Professor
Director, Quality and Safety Innovation Center
School of Nursing, Health, and Exercise Science
The College of New Jersey

Gerry Altmiller is a professor of nursing, a clinical nurse specialist consultant for Jefferson Einstein Healthcare Network in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and director of the Quality and Safety Innovation Center at The College of New Jersey. She served on the QSEN Advisory board for over a decade and for 7 years led the QSEN Academic Task Force, creating opportunities for its 120 faculty members to network, share ideas, and conduct academic focused research.

Dr. Altmiller authored the Teamwork and Communication Module of the National Council of State Boards of Nursing’s Transition to Practice program and in 2014 she received a Lindback Award for distinguished teaching. Her work on constructive feedback led to the development, testing, and dissemination of support tools for nurse educators and learning tools for students to view feedback as an opportunity. Dr. Altmiller serves on the editorial board for Nurse Educator Journal. She is a member of the AACN workgroups that developed the toolkits to support adoption of the 2021 AACN Essentials and serves as an AACN Coach for implementation of the Essentials. Her research focuses on clinical evaluation, quality and safety integration, and creating a just culture in academia.

Speakers

Mary K. Fey, PhD, RN, CHSE-A, ANEF, FAAN
Principal and Managing Partner, Transformative Teaching, LLC
Principal Faculty, Center for Medical Simulation

Dr. Mary Fey has been a nurse educator for over 30 years. She received a PhD & Certificate in Teaching from the University of Maryland. Her initial work as an educator took place in a large academic medical center, where she had oversight of the new nurse transition to practice programs for 10 years. She has held a number of academic appointments in both community colleges and universities. Dr. Fey’s expertise is in faculty development, experiential and reflective learning, and the importance of the teacher-learner relationship. She regularly publishes and presents on these topics. Currently, Dr. Fey is Principal Faculty at the Center for Medical Simulation in Boston, MA, and is a founding partner in the academic consulting firm Transformative Teaching.

Kate J. Morse, PhD, RN, AGACNP- Ret., CHSE, FAAN
Assistant Dean Innovation and Experiential Learning
Drexel University

Dr. Kate Morse obtained her BSN from the University of Calgary, Alberta; her MSN as a clinical nurse specialist in critical care from San Diego State University; her Post- masters certificate as an Adult Nurse Practitioner from California State University, Long Beach and her PhD from Villanova University. She is a retired Adult and Acute Care Nurse Practitioner and Certified as a Simulation Educator (CHSE). She is a past Jonas Scholar and National League of Nursing Sim Leader. She served as the VP of Membership for INASCL (International Nursing Association in Simulation and Clinical Learning) from 2016 – 2018. Dr. Morse held the positions of Assistant and Associate Director of the Center for Educational Leadership and International Programs Medical Simulation in Boston 2015 – 2019. Dr. Morse is currently the Assistant Dean for Experiential Learning and Innovation in the College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Associate Clinical Professor and principal faculty for the Center for Medical Simulation.

Speakers

Nancy O'Neill, EdD
Acting Director, William E. Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation
University System of Maryland (USM)

Nancy O'Neill joined the USM Kirwan Center in February 2016. At the Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation, she coordinates the System’s teaching and learning center directors and plans capacity-building initiatives with and for faculty development leaders across the System. She also supports Kirwan Center initiatives that directly engage faculty and academic leaders, including efforts to scale and sustain open educational resources. Previously, she served as the Director of the Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, and Technology at the University of Baltimore for four years. Her work focused on supporting faculty innovation in teaching as well as curriculum development and alignment, student learning assessment, and institutional effectiveness. In her last year there, she helped guide the University’s general education reform and institutional assessment efforts ahead of re-accreditation. Prior to this, Nancy spent a decade at what is now the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), contributing to national projects related to high-impact practices, undergraduate curriculum and quality, student learning outcomes assessment, institutional renewal, and diversity and equity initiatives. Nancy earned a doctorate in higher education management from the University of Pennsylvania, a master's degree in American Studies and a master's degree in College Student Personnel from the University of Maryland, College Park, and a bachelor's degree in journalism and social criticism from the University of Buffalo. Her dissertation examined faculty use of open educational resources (OER) in relation to the content and teaching affordances made possible by open licensing.