Dear Gator Nursing Alumni & Friends,

It has already been such a busy, but wonderfully fulfilling, year in the College of Nursing as we near the end of the spring semester. This year has provided an opportunity for the college — our faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends — to not only pause and reflect on our accomplishments, but to also dream big about the future for the college. What’s next as we prepare the best and brightest Gator Nurses?

Our theme this year is transition, and it has indeed been a year of transitioning, planning and positioning ourselves for the future. In the last several months, we have finalized the college’s next five-year strategic plan, and are on the home stretch of the approval process for our transformed B.S.N. curriculum, which we will implement beginning in fall 2018. I cannot thank our faculty and staff enough for their tireless dedication to these major projects. Our future is so bright!

I hope that you will take a moment to flip through an overview of the college’s new strategic plan, our road map for the future, in this issue. It embodies all we aspire to be as educators, researchers and clinicians who care, lead, and inspire.

Speaking of inspiring, the college kicked off 2018 with our biennial Dorothy M. Smith Nursing Leadership Conference, Unleashing Innovation & Creativity to Transform Health Care. It was such an inspirational day with distinguished presenters, fueled by innovative and lively discussion and collaboration, as we focused on entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship and social entrepreneurship in health care. You can read more about DMS in this issue; I truly believe we honored our Founding Dean Dorothy M. Smith’s spirit and distinguished legacy with our thoughtful approach to innovation and entrepreneurship.

As you may have heard, in October the University of Florida launched the “Go Greater” capital campaign to raise $3 billion by 2022. The College of Nursing is participating in this ambitious endeavor with our own goal of $22 million to fund advancements in nursing education, research and patient care. This is a lofty goal for our college, but, as we all know, Gator Nurses can do anything. I am excited to take part in and help lead our College of Nursing through this pivotal time. We have identified five areas within the college to advance and improve our mission. I encourage you to take a deeper look at these initiatives in this magazine issue and identify areas close to your heart where you can make a direct impact.

Our alumni and friends hold the power to make dreams come true for our students. The future of nursing is in your hands, and I look forward to working with each of you as we Go Greater in 2018!