Western Academy of Nurses (WAN) Nomination Information

BACKGROUND

In 1989, WIN established the Western Academy of Nurses (WAN) to recognize and honor nurses who have been actively engaged in WIN over a period of five to ten years and who have demonstrated excellence in research/scholarship, practice, and/or education.

See Members of the Western Academy of Nurses

MEMBERSHIP

Membership in WAN is by nomination, and members of WAN must be individual members of WIN. WAN holds an annual business meeting in conjunction with WIN’s annual Communicating Nurse Research Conference.

NOMINATION GUIDELINES

Each nominee must have a sponsor and a co-sponsor. The sponsor must be a WAN member in good standing of the Academy and not currently serving on the WAN Selection Committee. The co-sponsor must be an individual member of WIN or from a WIN member organization and not currently serving on the WAN Selection Committee. A sponsor may nominate more than one individual for induction into the Academy.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION

Nominees for induction into the Academy shall have been actively engaged in WIN over a period of five to ten years, be a member of WIN, and have demonstrated excellence in research/scholarship, practice, and/or education. Research, practice, and education will be given equal consideration. Each of the statements from the sponsor and co-sponsor should address the criteria below and provide evidence as follows:

Evidence of active engagement in the mission and goals of WIN
In 300 words or less, provide evidence to clearly illustrate the nominee’s active engagement and meaningful involvement in WIN activities over a period of five to ten years. Include participation on committees, involvement in projects or attendance/presentations at WIN conferences. It is not required that the nominee has held elective office.

Evidence of excellence in nursing research, practice, and/or education
In 500 words or less, address in detail how the nominee demonstrates excellence in nursing research, practice, and/or education. Statements do not have to address all three (research, practice, education). If the nominee excels in multiple areas, the sponsor may wish to focus on a single area in her/his statement with the co-sponsor focusing on a different area of excellence.

Examples of excellence in research might include, but are not limited to:

History of funded research over time;
Development of research instruments that have been adopted by other researchers;
Publication of results of research over time;
Research awards, grant awards, publications;
Peer reviewed presentations—both poster and podium;
Invited regional, national, and/or international presentations

Examples of excellence in practice might include, but are not limited to:

Modeling evidence-based practice;
Mentoring less experienced colleagues in evidence-based practice;
Planning and implementing quality improvement project(s);
Publishing peer-reviewed evidence-based practice project(s);
Publishing clinical guidelines;
Developing an ongoing clinic;
Development and implementation of a new role in the clinical arena, etc.

Examples of excellence in education might include, but are not limited to:

Developing unique instructional approaches or unique ways for students to demonstrate mastery;
Consistent, glowing evaluations from students;
Testimonials from junior faculty mentees;
Publication of articles describing implementation of unique teaching approaches;
Receipt of teaching awards, etc.

The sponsor and co-sponsor may elaborate on different areas of excellence and are encouraged to provide specific examples in the nomination. The two statements together should present as many accomplishments of the nominee as possible. The sponsor and co-sponsor statements are the sole materials used to evaluate the nominee.

SELECTION PROCESS

The WAN Selection Committee will review all nominations and select the nominees to be inducted into the Academy. The sponsors and co-sponsors will be notified of the decisions of the Selection Committee and will have the opportunity to notify the award recipient prior to the notification by WIN.

INDUCTION OF NEW MEMBERS

The induction of newly selected members of the Western Academy of Nurses will occur at the awards ceremony held in conjunction with WIN’s annual Communicating Nursing Research Conference. The new inductees will be introduced from the podium, receive an award, and be featured on the WIN website.

CONFERENCE EXPENSES

WIN is not able to defray registration fees or reimburse travel expenses for the award recipient, sponsor, or co-sponsor.

DEADLINE

The completed online nomination form and the sponsor and co-sponsor statements must be received no later than November 1.

SUBMISSION INFORMATION

Please complete the following form to submit your nomination.