The Honorable Shelia Jackson Lee Community Achievement Award Recipient
Dr. Betty N. Adams is professor and dean of Prairie View A&M University College of Nursing. In her leadership of 18 years, Dr. Adams has led in the expansion of programs at the baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral levels. She also tripled enrollment and graduates, appointed a stellar faculty and planned and oversaw the construction of a new nursing facility.
Throughout her career she has promoted the highest quality of nursing education, practice and research and contributed to the building of nursing’s theory and science. Dr. Adams has made significant contribution to health care and higher education by serving as the president of Texas Organization of Baccalaureate and Graduate Nursing Education and two elected terms on the Board of Governors of the National League for Nursing. As the University’s representative in the Texas Medical Center, Dr. Adams serves on the Texas Medical Center Policy Council, Texas Medical Center Governmental Affairs Advisory Council and the Texas Medical Center International Affairs Advisory Council. For the last four consecutive years Dr. Adams has been a member of the Evaluators for Minority Scholarship Selections through the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, which has contributed to the success of minorities receiving financial assistance for doctoral studies in nursing. Dr. Adams has promoted nursing science and policy through her innovation and sincere commitment for advancing professional nursing. She has been a repeated contributor at the United States House of Representatives Eight District of Texas Round Table Presenter on the Health Care Reform.
Dr. Adams’ most profound contribution has been her leadership in designing and administering nursing programs. Since her tenure at Prairie View A&M University and the doubling of annual enrollment and graduates, the results are related to the success in program offerings and the appointment of an expert outstanding faculty team, who is adept in student engagement and serving a diverse, heterogeneous student body. It has been a remarkable experience in the systematic enhancement in the image and ranking of the College of Nursing as illustrated in America’s Best Nursing Schools and Colleges (2015) and NurseJournal.Org (2016): Prairie View A&M University College of Nursing LVN-BSN Program was ranked number two; and, the Family Nurse Practitioner Program was ranked number four in Texas. Also, concomitant with Dr. Adams’ ingenuity, the innovation in philanthropic achievements has greatly influenced and benefitted the expansion of programs and endowments, and most specifically the continued stance of technology holdings in the nursing facility, coupled in application of curricular development, teaching and faculty development and scholarship.
Dr. Adams received her Ph.D. from the University of New Orleans, her Master of Nursing from Emory University in Atlanta, GA and her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, LA. She completed a post-doctoral study on Management and Leadership in Higher Education at Harvard University.
