The College of Nursing and Health Professions will bid farewell to its dean, Janet M. Brown, Ph.D., RN, after 17 years in the position. Dean Brown retires June 30, 2017, concluding a richly successful term of leadership filled with accomplishments and vision that have and will continue to place Valparaiso University at the forefront of health care education.
Dean Brown joined Valpo as a clinical assistant in 1977. During her tenure as dean, the College has expanded to offer new health care programs, including health care leadership, physician assistant studies, public health, and health administration. The College also established the doctor of nursing practice program, marking Valpo as the first university in Indiana to offer this degree.
Dean Brown’s research has been widely published, and her talents in the classroom were recognized with the 1998–1999 Caterpillar Award for Excellence in Teaching. Before coming to Valpo, she served as a staff nurse at the Visiting Nurses Association and as a medical-surgical unit director at Porter Valparaiso Hospital. Currently, she is a member of the Porter Regional Hospital Board of Trustees.