Dr. Cheryl Lacasse Named Nurse Educator of the Year
The University of Arizona College of Nursing’s Cheryl L. Lacasse, PhD, RN, AOCNS, was named Nurse Educator of the Year for 2021 by the March of Dimes Arizona during their Heroes in Action awards ceremony. Dr. Lacasse is a clinical professor, program director for the RN-MS program, and director of Teaching, Learning and Evaluation. She also is a Distinguished Fellow of the University of Arizona Center for University Education Scholarship.
Cheryl L. Lacasse, PhD, RN, AOCNS
The Nurse Educator of the Year award honors registered nurses who educate future nurses in either a university, community college or hospital setting, or those who have contributed significantly to research within the nursing profession. The Heroes in Action awards, which honor outstanding nurses, educators, researchers and maternal and infant health providers, was formerly called the March of Dimes Arizona Nurse of the Year Awards.
“The Arizona March of Dimes Nurse Educator Award nomination process provided an opportunity to reflect on the nursing and teaching experience and wisdom that I bring to my role as a nurse educator,” said Dr. Lacasse. “It is a true honor to be acknowledged for my contributions to the nursing profession through education, professional development, mentoring, and developing future nurses and leaders in health care.”
Dr. Lacasse has been a nurse-educator for over 30 years, 25 of which have been at the University of Arizona Health Sciences. She has taught across entry- and advanced-level programs, and mentored students and new nurses into professional practice through onboarding, precepting and ongoing staff development. She also mentors staff and faculty in various dimensions of nursing practice, scholarship and service.
“I became a nurse educator early in my career as a clinical preceptor for nursing students and new graduate nurses and discovered that my curiosity and love of learning provided a foundation for discovering that teaching was the ultimate learning experience. I enjoy providing wisdom and guidance for each individual and watching them grow into a nurse or nurse leader and become the bright future of the profession,” Dr. Lacasse said.
Dr. Lacasse served as a faculty advisor for Project Taking Charge 3.0, a community-based interdisciplinary clinic that provided health screening and education to families living in South Tucson. She is a volunteer mentor for early career nurses through the American Nurses Association and she serves on several professional organizations as an abstract reviewer for conferences. She also is the chair of the Governance Committee for the Beta Mu Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau, the international honor society for nursing.
Dr. Lacasse earned her PhD in nursing from the University of Utah in 2017 and her MSN from Boston College in 1989.