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Mary Hanks, EdD, MSN, RN, CNL, CNE

Chair/Associate Professor
The University of West Alabama
Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Dr. Mary Hanks received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master of Science in Nursing, and Doctor of Education degrees from the University of Alabama. She worked as a staff nurse and assistant nurse manager at DCH Regional Medical Center from 1993 until 2010. In 2011, Dr. Hanks began her career in nursing education as an Assistant Professor at The University of West Alabama (UWA). Her dissertation study explored the impact of incivility in the workplace and its effect on new graduate nurses. She currently serves as Chairperson and an Associate Professor of nursing at The University of West Alabama, where the ASN program has achieved 94-100% NCLEX pass rates since 2021. Her most noted accomplishment in nursing education to date is the creation of the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing accredited Online RN-BSN program at the UWA. The BSN program admitted its first four students in January 2021 and has graduated 23 BSN-prepared nurses. Additionally, Dr. Hanks and two colleagues at UWA founded a mentoring group for minority female students, Sustah2Sister, which holds seminars exploring the use of professionalism, soft skills, and historical context in the workplace. Honors include Recognition for Excellence in Dissertation Research from the University of Alabama’s College of Education (2017), Joffre and Zadie B. Whisenton Award in recognition of the top African-American student to graduate from the Graduate School at the University of Alabama Spring (2017), the William E. Gilbert Award for outstanding teaching (2018), The Loraine McIlwain Bell Trustee Professor Award for Excellence (2023), and the 2023 Alabama League for Nursing Lamplighter Award for professional service. Her certifications include Clinical Nurse Leader and Certified Nurse Educator. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, Kappa Delta Epsilon, The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, and several professional organizations including The National League for Nursing, the American Nurses Association, the Alabama State Nurses Association, and The National Black Nurses Association. Dr. Hanks is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Incorporated. She is married and has two children. She released her first book of poems, “God Lifted Me”, in July 2023.

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