On Feb. 27 Dr. Cathleen Shultz announced she will be stepping down from her position as dean of the Carr College of Nursing on June 1. After completing her duties as an administrator, Shultz will begin a yearlong sabbatical in June to engage in scholarly writing. She will remain a part of the Harding faculty as a full time professor of nursing.
As a member of the Harding faculty since 1976, Shultz was named the chairperson of the department of nursing in 1977 and then made the founding dean of the Carr College of Nursing, a position she has held for 34 years.
“Cathie Shultz has devoted almost her entire professional career to the development and growth of Harding’s baccalaureate nursing program,” said President Bruce McLarty. “She has been there since the early days of the program. Directing this dynamic professional program for 37 years is a milestone in the world of higher education.”
According to a news release from the Office of Public Relations, the Carr College of Nursing was the first nursing program in Arkansas to use computers as a part of learning, introduce primary care in the curriculum, provide health services for Head Start and HIPPY programs, initiate health screening clinics in public schools, provide health information and services for the elderly, and incorporate health missions into the curriculum. All of these advances in the program took place under Shultz’s leadership.
Shultz was appointed by Governors Bill Clinton and Mike Beebe to serve on the Arkansas State Board of Nursing. She is currently serving her fourth term on the governing body. She was elected to serve as president of the board from 1991-92. She is currently chair of the board’s education committee.
Her many honors include twice being named Distinguished Teacher at Harding, selected as Outstanding Alumna from the University of South Carolina College of Nursing, honored with the 2010 Distinguished Service Award from the Arkansas Nurses’ Association, recognized with her induction in 1992 as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, chosen in 2009 as a Fellow of the Arkansas Gerontological Society, and named in 2012 as a Fellow of the Academy of Nurse Educators.
“Dean Shultz is leaving behind a remarkable legacy of developing and leading a highly successful academic program,” said Provost Larry Long. “She has an outstanding record of accomplishments on our campus, in the nursing community in Arkansas and across the nation.”
Many students where very surprised by Dr. Shultz’s decision but still see her as an inspiration because of her extremely successful professional career.
“None of us students saw it coming,” Larissa Pinczuk said. “We all highly respect Dr. Shultz greatly and will be very sad to see her go. She has contributed so much to our nursing program over the years and I feel like it won’t be the same without her.”
