The Nurse Support Program II grant administrator is remembered for her powerful impact on nursing education.
Colleagues and friends from across Maryland gathered May 9 to celebrate the legacy of Peg E. Daw, DNP, RN-BC, CNE, FAAN, and to honor her significant contributions to and impact on nursing and health care throughout the state of Maryland. Daw served for 12 years (2010-22) as the Nurse Support Program (NSP) II grant administrator at the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC).
The remembrance event was held in the University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON) auditorium and was attended by Daw’s mother and daughter, who traveled to Maryland from North Carolina to listen to the tributes Daw received, ranging from funny stories to poignant remarks. Those who were unable to attend in person were able to view the event via livestream.
“I know we are all grateful that we will have this opportunity to share with them the lasting impact that Peg’s work has had on so many nurses and nursing institutions here in Maryland, and for them to witness firsthand how we continue to hold Peg in our hearts with the deepest respect and affection. Thank you so much for joining us today,” said Jane M. Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN, the Bill and Joanne Conway Dean of the University of Maryland School of Nursing. She described Daw, who passed away in December, as “an exceptional individual who did so much to advance the nursing profession.”
As the NSP II grant administrator, she marshaled resources of the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission, MHEC, and the Maryland Deans and Directors of Schools of Nursing to create a statewide lattice of educational NSP grants, which changed the structure of educational financial support in Maryland to expand the nurse educator workforce. She was the architect and developer of nine different types of continuous nurse educator grants, academic-practice partnerships, and statewide resource grants totaling over $200,000,000 and funded through 2025.
Her work promoted rapid expansion of the associate-to-bachelor’s programs. Her efforts resulted in new statewide funding for the Maryland Clinical Simulation Resource Consortium, providing clinical simulation equipment statewide and establishing simulation quality guidelines; UMSON’s Nurse Leadership Institute, which prepares nurse faculty and clinicians for leadership positions and collaborative partnerships between academia and practice; the Maryland Nursing Workforce Center at UMSON; and many other forward-thinking programs.
Most importantly, Daw developed a supportive working collaboration of academic and practice nurse leaders across the state to communicate; inform; and mutually create, implement, and continuously improve initiatives to strengthen and advance nursing in Maryland.
Speakers from throughout the nursing community statewide recounted Daw’s impact on education, practice, research and scholarship, and policy.
Daw “had an enormous influence on nursing in Maryland,” said Mary Etta Mills, ScD, MS ’73, BSN ’71, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, a retired professor from UMSON.
Kirschling, co-chair of the Maryland Action Coalition, also announced that the organization’s annual award will now be named the Dr. Peg E. Daw Exemplary Leadership Award. The award, posthumously bestowed upon Daw for 2023, was presented to Daw’s family.
Other speakers at the ceremony included:
- Rick Cooper, MSN, RN, associate dean, nursing program administrator, Allegany College of Maryland
- Charlotte Wood, PhD, MSN, MBA, MSL, RN, CDA, professor and director, CHP faculty development, Coppin State University
- Joan Warren, PhD ’04, MS ’88, RN, NPD-BC, NEA-BC, FAAN, previous executive director, Maryland Organization of Nurse Leaders Inc./Maryland Nurse Residency Collaborative
- Benjamin Quintanilla, MSN ’18, BSN’11, RN, NRP, nurse consultant, NSP I Grant, Health Services Cost Review Commission (HSCRC)
- Rita D’Aoust, PhD, ANP-BC, CNE, FAANP FNAP, FAAN, DNP/PhD program director, associate professor, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing
- James D. Fielder, PhD, former Maryland secretary of higher education
- Oscar Ibarra, MS, chief, information management and program administration, HSCRC
- Kim Ford, BS, NSP II assistant grant administrator, MHEC
- Lisa Seldomridge, PhD, RN, CNE, professor of nursing, Salisbury University, and principal investigator, LeadNursingForward.org
- Laura Schenk, DNP, RN, CNE, NSP II grant administrator, MHEC.