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CSM Nursing Professor Dr. Eden Kan Recognized by Maryland Higher Education Commission for Outstanding Service

February 3, 2021

Congratulations to CSM Nursing Professor Dr. Eden Kan for being recognized for her outstanding service to CSM students and the state of Maryland.

Congratulations to CSM Nursing Professor Dr. Eden Kan for being recognized for her outstanding service to CSM students and the state of Maryland.

The Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC) Secretary Dr. James D. Fielder announced this morning that 13 members of Maryland’s higher education nurse faculty from across the state have been recognized for their contributions in nursing education and their service to Maryland nursing students. Among the awardees was College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Nursing Professor Dr. Eden Kan, who was recognized in the category of ‘Engagement in the Nursing Program and Employing Institution.’

The Nurse Support Program II (NSP II), which is administered by the MHEC and funded through the Health Services Cost Review Commission, recently announced the first annual Nurse Faculty Annual Recognition Awards (NFAR), showcasing 13 of Maryland’s finest nurse faculty. Each of the award recipients were nominated by their Dean or Director of Nursing as full-time nurse faculty and will receive $10,000.

“I am so proud of the outstanding efforts of MHEC’s NSP II program, which continues to create new programs that support and celebrate nursing faculty in Maryland,” said Fielder. “This new recognition award offers an opportunity to publicly thank these important individuals who are making a difference in educating the next generation of nurses in Maryland.”

“In Dr. Kan’s own words, she prefers ‘to be in the background supporting and helping others,’” wrote Acting Dean of the School of Science and Health Dr. Laura Polk in her nomination of Kan. “As she has lived out this philosophy she has had an exceptional impact on the College of Southern Maryland nursing program.”

Polk explained that in addition to being full time faculty, Kan is the course coordinator for the first semester of the program. In this role, she is responsible for onboarding each cohort of new students. Kan rose to the challenge in March 2020, according to Polk, to work to convert an admitted-student orientation to a virtual meeting, reached out to individual students regarding admission questions and concerns related to Covid-19, and spent considerable time over the summer when off-contract responding to individual student issues. Kan also designed a virtual nursing program and course orientation that was delivered to the incoming Fall 2020 cohort. This orientation will also be used in Spring 2021.

“During 2019-2020 the nursing program had several significant faculty vacancies, including the Nursing Program Coordinator,” Polk continued. “Dr. Kan volunteered to take on the responsibility for hiring all nursing adjunct faculty for both the spring 2020 and fall 2020 semesters. This required Dr. Kan to spend countless hours over winter holiday break and throughout the summer reviewing resumes, interviewing candidates, and developing a plan for lab and clinical course coverage. Her offer to engage in the nursing program in this way resulted in the nursing program being able to fully cover all positions and provide students with high-quality clinical experiences.”

“The average teaching experience of the award recipients was 20 years and included 10 nominees with doctoral degrees and three nominees with master’s level preparation,” said NSP II Director Dr. Peggy Daw. “Also, 62% of the experienced faculty awarded holds a specialty teaching certificate or the National League for Nursing’s Certified Nurse Educator credential.”

For more information on the awards, go to https://nursesupport.org/nurse-support-program-ii/grants/statewide-initiatives/-nurse-faculty-annual-recognition-nfar-/

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