Press Releases and Statements
AONE Announces 2011 Honorary Member Award
Contact:
MT Meadows, AONE - (312) 422-2807
Chicago, IL (March 25, 2011)—Donna E. Shalala, PhD, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), is the recipient of the American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) 2011 Honorary Member Award. This award recognizes a person who has made a noteworthy contribution to the health care field and to nursing leadership practice, and who has supported the mission of AONE through work, research or service to the health care community at large. Dr. Shalala will be honored at an award presentation during the AONE 44th Annual Meeting and Exposition in San Diego on April 15, 2011.
Shalala currently serves as professor of political science and president of the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. She has more than 30 years of experience as an accomplished scholar, teacher and administrator.
In 2009, Shalala was appointed chair of the Committee on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Initiative on the Future of Nursing at the Institute of Medicine (IOM), a two-year effort of the IOM and RWJF to respond to the need to assess and transform the nursing profession. The committee worked to define a clear agenda and blueprint for action for the future of nursing, including changes in public and institutional policies at the national, state and local levels.
As HHS secretary for eight years from 1993 to 2001, Shalala directed the welfare reform process, made health insurance available to millions of children through the approval of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), raised child immunization rates to the highest levels in history, led major reforms of the FDA’s drug approval process and food safety system, revitalized the National Institutes of Health, and directed a major management and policy reform of Medicare. She served in this role for all eight years of the Clinton administration, becoming the nation's longest serving HHS secretary. At the end of her tenure, The Washington Post described her as “one of the most successful government managers of modern times.”
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Shalala received an AB degree in history from Western College for Women, and a PhD from The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. One of the country’s first Peace Corp volunteers, she served in Iran from 1962 to 1964. She has held tenured professorships at Columbia University, the City University of New York (CUNY), and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She served as president of Hunter College of the City University of New York from 1980 to 1987 and as chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1987 to 1993.
Shalala has received more than four dozen honorary degrees and several other honors, including the 2010 Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human Rights, which recognizes individuals for outstanding dedication to improving the health and life chances of disadvantaged populations in South Africa and internationally. She received the 1992 National Public Service Award and the 1994 Glamour magazine Woman of the Year Award, and in 2005, was named one of “America’s Best Leaders” by U.S. News & World Report and the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
In 2008, President George W. Bush presented Shalala with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. She has been elected to the Council on Foreign Relations; National Academy of Education; the National Academy of Public Administration; the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; the American Philosophical Society; the National Academy of Social Insurance; the American Academy of Political and Social Science; the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.
About the American Organization of Nurse Executives
The American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) is the national professional organization for nurses who design, facilitate and manage care. With more than 7,500 members, AONE is the leading voice of nursing leadership in health care. Since 1967, the organization has provided leadership, professional development, advocacy and research to advance nursing practice and patient care, promote nursing leadership excellence and shape public policy for health care. AONE is a subsidiary of the American Hospital Association (AHA). For additional information, visit the AONE website at www.aone.org.
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