Eun-Ok Im has been chosen as the new dean of the School of Nursing at the University of Texas at Austin, the University announced in a press release on July 10. She will start in her new position in September.
“UT Austin was my home institution from 2002 to 2011, and I am thrilled about the opportunity to return to further champion the mission and success of one of the top nursing schools in the nation," Im said. "I am also looking forward to reconnecting with friends and colleagues from my time at the University... Through my role as dean, I know we will strengthen our research efforts and opportunities to advance nursing science and raise future generations of excellent nurses — ultimately providing better care for all.”
She will succeed Alexa Stuifbergen, who is retiring after 14 years as dean, the release said. Stuifbergen's many contributions to the university include securing $56 million for scholarships and other goals and initiatives, the release said.
Im has focused on the use of technology to provide innovative care, and she is a leader in cross-cultural women’s health research, the release said. She was the La Quinta Motor Inns Inc. Centennial Professor in Nursing at UT Austin from 2007 to 2011.
"Im’s research career highlights include 74 funded studies totaling $190 million over the past 25 years, including serving as principal investigator on several major National Institutes of Health (NIH) studies. Her research results and expertise have been shared in over 450 publications, editorial review boards and research review panels, including the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the NIH and the American Heart Association," the release said.
She has received many awards, including the 2014 International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame Award from Sigma Theta Tau International, the Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science 2020 Outstanding Nurse Scientist Award, the Southern Nursing Research Society Distinguished Research Award, the 2022 Faye Glenn Abdellah Leadership Award from the Friends of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), and the 2023 Oncology Nursing Society Distinguished Researcher Award, the release said. She is the editor-in-chief of Advances in Nursing Science. She has degrees from Seoul National University and the University of California in San Francisco, the release said.
“Nursing plays an important role in health care, and our School of Nursing is positioned to drive innovation and excellence by training future leaders, conducting cutting-edge research, and collaborating across our medical and technology disciplines,” Jay Hartzell, UT Austin president, said in the news release. “Eun-Ok brings the teaching and research expertise and imaginative vision for the future of nursing that will help us improve health outcomes and change lives."
The University of Texas at Austin has 52,000 students and 3,000 faculty members across 18 schools and colleges and draws over $650 million per year for exploratory studies, its website says.