The assistant professor has a broad range of legislative, health policy, and advocacy experience.
Karin G. Russ, JD, MS '09, BSN '89, RN, assistant professor, has been appointed interim director of legal affairs and contractual services for the University of Maryland School of Nursing (UMSON).
Russ joined UMSON as a clinical instructor in 2014, having previously served as an adjunct clinical instructor in Community and Public Health Nursing from 2009 - 14. In 2022, she was promoted to assistant professor. She has served as an instructor for several courses, including Evidence Informed Health Policy & Advocacy; Public Health: Population-Focused Nursing Care; and Climate Change: Evidence and Solutions.
Russ earned her JD degree from the Francis King Carey School of Law at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. She earned her Master of Science and Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees from UMSON. She also earned Environmental Health and Teaching in Nursing and the Health Professions certificates from UMSON. She was a 2016 - 17 Fellow in the Nurse Leadership Institute and a 2014 - 15 Health Policy Fellow in the Reach the Decision Makers (EPA) Program at the University of California, San Francisco.
In addition to her academic responsibilities, she served as the public health officer for the COVID-19 Response Team at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG), reviewing and implementing federal and state health policies and privacy laws with respect to COVID-19 testing and vaccination requirements. She served on UMSON’s Judicial Board for entry-level students for two terms and is actively engaged in interdisciplinary education as a member of a team developing coursework with the schools of Medicine, Social Work, and Law. Her health policy and advocacy activities have included written and oral testimony on environmental issues before the Maryland General Assembly and organizing advocacy experiences for undergraduate students and faculty for Nursing Advocacy on Capitol Hill. She currently serves on the Legislative Committee of the Maryland Nurses Association, on the UMSON Climate Change Committee, and on the USG Green Committee.
She succeeds Ann Mech, JD, MS '78, BSN '76, RN, who retired effective Oct. 22, 2023. For 35 years, Mech shaped and guided every aspect of the structure and functioning of UMSON's legal affairs office. In addition to her understanding of the law and regulatory processes, she has a deep reservoir of knowledge and an incredible memory regarding all aspects of the Maryland Board of Nursing and the Maryland Higher Education Commission. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she worked closely with Jane M. Kirschling, PhD, RN, FAAN, the former Bill and Joanne Conway Dean, as a key member of the leadership team, and her efforts were essential to guiding the School of Nursing’s response to the pandemic. This included helping to shape the processes for the School’s early-exit program for entry-level graduates, developed at the request of then-Gov. Larry Hogan. She also worked to establish a statewide portal process for students interested in providing care. When UMSON assumed direction of the vaccination clinic at the UMB Southern Management Corporation Campus Center, following the initial partnership with UMMC, Mech played a pivotal role as the supervisor of students with more than 466 students providing 3,799 hours of service. She also helped guide the complex and difficult process of returning to in-person learning, navigating the varying requirements of public health officials and our numerous clinical partners. Throughout her tenure, as a member of the faculty, she has brought her broad experience to the teaching of graduate-level courses such as Health Systems and Health Policy: Leadership and Quality Improvement.
Mech joined UMSON as an assistant professor in 1988 and since 1991 served as coordinator and then as director of legal affairs. A two-time alumna, she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing and her master’s degree from UMSON; she subsequently received her JD degree from George Washington University and has been a member of the Maryland Bar and of the Bar of the U.S. Supreme Court.