Dr. Newschwander has been an administrator, teacher and clinician for more than four decades. He has taught in undergraduate and graduate programs at Marquette University, the University of Virginia, The Catholic University of America and The University of Vermont. He was appointed Dean of the Auburn Schools of Nursing in 2009. He has published in nursing and education journals, presented scholarly papers at conferences in the US and Canada and directed the Comparative Health Care Summer Program at Oxford University through the University of Virginia. He is active in several national professional organizations including the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and Sigma Theta Tau and has been elected to honor societies including Delta Epsilon Sigma, Pi Lambda Theta and the Raven Society.

Dr. Caralise Hunt has over twenty years of nursing experience including medical-surgical and maternal-child nursing. Dr. Hunt joined the Auburn University faculty in 2000 as a clinical associate. She became a full-time nursing instructor for Auburn in 2005 and began an appointment as Assistant Clinical Professor in 2007. After completing a doctorate in 2011, she entered a tenure-track position as Assistant Professor. She was named Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in 2018 and was promoted to Professor in 2023.

Dr. Pao-Feng Tsai has over 27 years of experience in the academic field. Prior to moving to the U.S., she held several teaching and research positions in Taiwan. In 1999, she began a tenure track appointment as assistant professor in the College of Nursing, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) in Little Rock, Ark., and was promoted to full professor in 2013. During her tenure at UAMS, she served as the research leader of the Arkansas’ Hartford Center of Geriatric Nursing Excellence, was the recipient of the Alice An-Loh Sun Endowed Professorship in Geriatric Nursing, and was selected Graduate Faculty of the Year and Best Ph.D. Faculty of the Year. She joined the Auburn University (AU) College of Nursing as Professor and Associate Dean for Research in 2020. Dr. Tsai is a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. She was the recipient of the 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award for Excellence in Scholarship conferred by Kaohsiung Medical University and serves as the member of the Biotechnology, Health and Innovation Research Center Advisory Board at the Hungkuang University, Taiwan. She has received several National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and foundation funded research grants as principal investigator or co-investigator in the past 20 years focusing mainly on pain and geriatric care. She had sponsored several undergraduate, predoctoral and postdoctoral fellowships. She has made presentations at national and international conventions and published more than 50 articles. She serves as the chair of the research committee in the College of Nursing and as a member of several College of Nursing and AU committees. She has been reviewing grants for NIH, VA, Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, American Nurses Foundation, Southern Nursing Research Society, Alzheimer’s Association, Research Grants Council of Hong Kong and the Dunhill Medical Trust, London, England.

Barbara Wilder received her initial nursing education at St. Margaret's School of Nursing, then returned to school to complete her undergraduate degree from Auburn University at Montgomery. She received a master's degree in Adult Health from Troy State University and another master's degree as a nurse practitioner from University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). In 1995, she completed a Doctorate of Science in Nursing from UAB. The focus of her doctoral research was hardiness and quality of life in older adults. Wilder's research program continues to center around adult health. Another component of the research program is nurse practitioners and their perceived roles and actual roles. An emerging area is service learning health promotion and its impact upon nursing students and low income clients. Another huge area is serving learning health promotion and its impact upon nursing students and low income clients. Wilder joined the AU faculty in 1985 and currently teaches the NP courses in the master's program and some Medical-Surgical concepts in the undergraduate program.

Dr. Tiffani Chidume joined the faculty at Auburn University as an Assistant Clinical Professor in 2018. She has 22 years of combined experience in nursing education, critical care, emergency nursing, long-term healthcare, and health information technology. She worked in the ICU at East Alabama Medical Center for over a decade and was certified as a Critical Care Registered Nurse (CCRN), now Alumnus CCRN. Tiffani has dual certifications in simulation. She is a certified healthcare simulation educator-advanced (CHSE-A) and a certified healthcare simulation operations specialist (CHSOS). Within the College of Nursing, she serves on the Simulation, Technology, and Diversity and Inclusion committees. She also serves on Auburn University's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion committee. In January 2021, Tiffani earned the Best Research Award in Nursing and Health Professions from the International Research Awards on New Science Inventions (NESIN 2020 Awards). In 2024, Tiffani was awarded the Dr. Jemelene Chastain Moore Distinguished Faculty Award as well as the Research Excellence Award and Academic Excellence Award from INACSL. She was also awarded an Anthony Battaglia Scholarship Award at the INACSL 2023 conference for her dedication and advancements in simulation. Professional Organizations: American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) American Nurses’ Association (ANA) Alabama State Nurses’ Association (ASNA) Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL) National League for Nursing (NLN) Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society in Nursing Society for Simulation in Healthcare (SSH).

Dr. Amy Curtis has over 17 years of combined experience in nursing and nursing education. She earned her BSN from Auburn University in 2003 and spent much of her nursing career working in orthopedics. She earned her MSN in 2011 from Auburn University and Auburn University Montgomery's Joint MSN Program. She also earned her College and University Teaching Graduate Certificate from Auburn University in 2011. Dr. Curtis earned her PhD in Adult Education from Auburn University in 2016. She is an Assistant Clinical Professor at Auburn University College of Nursing where she coordinates the Fundamentals of Nursing and Health Assessment courses for junior level nursing students. She also teaches in both the MSN and RN to BSN Graduate Programs at Auburn University. She is a Certified Healthcare Simulation Educator (CHSE) with over 9 years of simulation experience. Her research interests include best practice in simulation-based education, best practice in nursing education, vulnerable populations (Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities), geriatric/long-term nursing care, holistic admission practices, health disparities, and breast cancer education. She is a member the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning (INACSL), Simulation Society for Healthcare (SSH), Sigma, American Nurses Association (ANA), Alabama State Nurses Association (ASNA) District 5 where she currently serves as district Treasurer, American Cancer Society Action Network, and Auburn University Research Initiative for Cancer (AURIC)

Dr. Joy DeBellis joined the Auburn University College of Nursing faculty as an Assistant Clinical Professor in April 2020. She received her BS in Health Promotion from Auburn University in 1998 and worked as a personal trainer and fitness instructor for 9 years. She then received her BSN from Auburn University in 2007 and gained experience as an RN in med-surg, oncology, urology, and cardiology. In 2009, she completed her MSN from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and has worked as a Family Nurse Practitioner (certified AANP) for the past 12 years. Joy has experience as a CRNP in family health, cardiology, and veteran’s health. Joy completed her DNP in 2019 and began her journey in academia. Joy serves as the President for Sigma Theta Tau International, Theta Delta local chapter, and is a member of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), American Holistic Nursing Association (AHNA), Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, Golden Key Honor Society, and AMSUS. Joy serves on various committees within the AUCON, including the Graduate Evaluation Committee (Chair), Wellness Committee, and previously on the Outreach Committee. She passed the Lifestyle Medicine certification in December 2021 and is a Certified Professional of the ACLM (DipACLM/DipIBLM). She currently holds a part-time clinical practice at Varicosity Vein Center in Auburn, Alabama.

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Kathy Jo Ellison received her undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and her Master's and Doctoral degrees in Nursing from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She has taught at both the graduate and undergraduate levels at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the University of Tennessee, and at Auburn University. She has been on the faculty at Auburn University for 24 years. Her primary teaching areas include Evidence-Based Practice, Adult and Community Health, and Cross-Cultural Studies. Kathy Jo Ellison's research interests are primarily oriented toward chronic illness and caregiver education and support. She has also conducted research on mammography attitudes and behavior, blood glucose control in post-operative diabetic clients, and several areas of student and patient education. Current areas of development include education and support of persons with memory problems and improved nursing education for mass casualty incidents.

Christine Feeley is a nurse researcher with extensive clinical experience and a passion for helping children and families. She received her BSN, MSN, and PhD from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and completed her post doctoral fellowship at Emory University. Dr. Feeley's research focuses on sleep in parents and children with a chronic illness, and how sleep may influence other aspects of life, including stress, anxiety, symptom management, and depressive symptoms. Her research is informed by her clinical experience as a pediatric nurse working with families and children with chronic illnesses. She is an active member of the Sleep Research Society, The American Diabetes Association, Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, and SNRS.

Margot Fox received a BSN from the Auburn University College of Nursing in 1986 and a MSN in Nurse Education from the joint Auburn University/AUM program in 2013. She began her career as a staff nurse in Orthopedics and Neurology in Asheville, North Carolina and later served as a community resource nurse for one of the first health information and referral services in the NC area. Following a move back to her hometown of Alexander City, Alabama in 1990, Mrs. Fox began a twelve-year career as an occupational health nurse in the textile industry. Mrs. Fox joined the AUCON faculty in 2014 as an assistant clinical professor and is a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE). She currently is a member of the AUCON Alumni Board and Sigma International Nursing Honor Society. For several years after joining the AUCON faculty, Mrs. Fox served as the community health coordinator and facilitated outreach and service-learning opportunities for our nursing students as they served populations throughout Lee and surrounding counties. In 2015, she co-developed and coordinated the school’s first Summer High School Nursing Camp. The annual camp is an engaging one-week summer program designed to introduce campers from across the country to the field of nursing through “hands-on” stations led by faculty and undergraduate students. Mrs. Fox is now assigned to all undergraduate Skills Labs and is a member of the EAGLES Simulation Center team. She loves facilitating foundational learning and confidence-building experiences for our future nurses in the state-of-the-art interactive educational environments offered at AUSON.

Mrs. Brooke Freeman received her Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science with a minor in Sports Coaching from Auburn University in May 2017. She found her passion for nursing shortly after graduating and decided to go back to school. She attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham's (UAB) Accelerated Master’s in Nursing Program (AMNP) and obtained her Masters of Science in Nursing in May 2020. She went on to work at UAB Medical West in Bessemer, AL specializing in Women’s Health. During this time she also worked as a clinical instructor for the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Her nursing experience includes: labor and delivery, postpartum care, newborn care, and women’s surgical services. Brooke returned to her alma mater as a clinical associate for the Auburn University College of Nursing in August 2022 and was subsequently hired as an Assistant Clinical Professor in April 2023. She currently teaches in the Maternity/Newborn course within our undergraduate program, and serves on our undergraduate curriculum committee and clinical committee.

Drew Frugé is an Associate Professor in the College of Nursing where his research spans multiple facets of healthy aging. As a postdoctoral fellow in the NCI-funded Cancer Prevention and Control Training Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, he began exploring the relationships among diet, physical activity, inflammation and the gut microbiome in cancer patients and survivors and has extended that research into understanding these relationships in adults with and at risk for other chronic diseases. Drew worked in corporate banking after receiving business degrees from Harding University, Mississippi State University (MSU), and Auburn University. He went back to school to become a Registered Dietitian and nutrition scientist and completed a PhD in Food Science, Nutrition, and Health Promotion from MSU in 2014. He has served as a Dietitian in the United States Army Reserve since 2017. https://auburn.box.com/v/FrugeCV20240319

Dr. Linda Gibson-Young has an exciting academic background in population health with a focus on pediatrics. Her work actively engages undergraduate and graduate students in outreach and research. Dr. Gibson-Young has a Ph.D. in nursing, an MBA, and is certified as a family nurse practitioner (ANCC). In 2021, she received the Distinguished Fellow of the National Academies of Practice in Nursing. In 2016, she became a Fellow in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (FAANP) and a Leadership for Academic Nursing Program (LANP) Fellow with the American Association of Colleges in Nursing (AACN). In 2015, she received the Outstanding Research Award from The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF). Collaborative and interdisciplinary teams partner with Dr. Gibson-Young's outreach and research across Alabama.

Dr. Robin Gosdin Farrell has been a part of Auburn for over 30 years as a Family Nurse Practitioner (certified ANCC). As a CRNP, Robin has worked in family health, college health, and women’s health. She brings over 34 years of experience as an RN with experience in urgent care, family care, pediatrics, neonatal intensive care, and college health. In 2010, she graduated with her DNP and began her journey in academia. She most recently served as Assistant Professor with Troy University (Montgomery campus) in the MSN Family Nurse Practitioner Program and the Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) program. Dr. Farrell is a member of National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculty (NONPF), Sigma Theta Tau Internal Nursing Honor Society, Golden Key International Honor Society, and is active in the Advanced Practitioners in the River Region. She and another faculty member founded the East Alabama Nurse Practitioner Council.

Dr. Rachel Helms joined the faculty at the Auburn University College of Nursing as an Assistant Clinical Professor in June 2022. She graduated from Auburn with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2009. Rachel began her career working as a staff nurse and then nurse leader in the Emergency and Trauma Center at Columbus Regional Medical Center, the region’s only level II trauma facility. After returning home to Atlanta in 2011, she continued to work as an emergency and trauma nurse at Atlanta Medical Center. She also spent 3 years working as a critical care transport/flight nurse at AirEvac Lifeteam. In 2014, she completed her Master of Science in Nursing with an Emergency Nurse Practitioner focus at Vanderbilt University. She has since worked as an Emergency Nurse Practitioner in metro Atlanta area. She earned the Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree from Auburn University in 2021. She is a member of Sigma Theta Tau, the American Academy of Emergency Nursing Practitioners, the American Nurses Association and the Georgia Nurses Association. Rachel has served as a clinical preceptor at the undergraduate and graduate levels throughout her career. She has a passion for providing young nurses with a strong educational foundation, through both classroom and clinical teaching. Her teaching focus includes senior level undergraduate courses in critical care as well as graduate level courses.

Mrs. Henderson joined the Auburn College of Nursing Faculty in 2016. She graduated from Auburn’s College of Nursing in 2013 with her Bachelors of Science in Nursing. Following graduation, she moved to Atlanta and worked for Emory University Hospital in the NeuroIntensive Care Unit. Mrs. Henderson then went on to graduate from Auburn University in 2016 with her Masters in Nursing Education. After graduation, Mrs. Henderson began working for the Auburn University College of Nursing and teaches first and second semester students in the areas of Nursing Pathophysiology and Adult Health Nursing. She is currently working on completing a PhD in Educational Psychology through Auburn University. Mrs. Henderson is also the Academic Coach for the College of Nursing. In this role, she works with College of Nursing students to improve test taking, time management, and study skills. She also founded the National Consortium for Nursing Academic Coaches, a national organization that brings together academic coaches from around the country to collaborate and support each other in their academic and clinical roles. She is the faculty advisor for the AUCON Student Wellness Committee, the AUCON Student Nurses Christian Fellowship, and the AUCON Orientation Counselors.

Dr. Eleanor Howell returned to the Auburn faculty in 2017 following 20 years in academic leadership positions. Howell first joined the Auburn faculty in 1994 as an associate professor and coordinator of special projects at Auburn University College of Nursing. In this role, she generated and managed faculty practice and service contracts, and taught in the BSN and joint MSN programs. Dr. Howell’s teaching career began at the University of Alabama at Birmingham where she taught in graduate programs in nursing administration, adult health, and trauma, and in the University’s geriatric education center and interdisciplinary injury control research center. She served as dean of the College of Nursing at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, and of the School of Nursing at Samford University. Dr. Howell serves as a team leader and on-site evaluator for the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. She has served as an institutional accreditation evaluator for the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association, a curriculum and accreditation consultant to various nursing programs, and participated in curriculum reform in China, nursing education seminars in the United Kingdom, and management training workshops for physicians from Azerbaijan and the Republics of Georgia and Armenia. Her research interests are in health services administration and policy, and she is teaching courses on evidence-based practice, policy, and quality and safety management in the graduate program.