Professor Named to First Nursing Chair; Honored for Teaching

An expert in the field of gerontology, Kristen (Gibson ’81) Mauk is no stranger to receiving awards, and the year 2007 was an exceptionally fruitful one.

It began with her appointment to the first chair in Valparaiso University’s College of Nursing—the Kreft Chair for the Advancement of Nursing Science.

Next, Mauk garnered the university’s prestigious Caterpillar Award for Excellence in Teaching, and the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses’ Educator Role Award. And this past November, she was named the 2007 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching Indiana Professor of the Year.

While she’s pleased with all accolades, the ones from Valpo are especially gratifying.

“In receiving both the Caterpillar award and the Kreft endowed chair position, I am humbled beyond words because I believe that each of my colleagues in the College of Nursing is equally worthy of these honors,” she says.

An international leader in gerontology and rehabilitation, Mauk’s 2006 textbook, Gerontological Nursing: Competencies for Care, was the first book to be based on competencies for care developed by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing and the Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing.

In Valpo’s College of Nursing, she has spearheaded efforts to improve geriatric education in both undergraduate and graduate courses. Her students regularly participate in service learning activities as part of their course work.

In 2004, the college received the “Infusing Gerontology Into the Undergraduate Baccalaureate Nursing Curriculum Award,” a prestigious national honor sponsored by the Hartford Foundation and American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

“The faculty members of the College of Nursing are to be commended for their continued commitment to and support of integrating ger­on­tology into the curriculum,” Mauk says. “I am truly blessed to be able to work with such dedicated nurses and scholars. As a VU alumna, I am proud to call Valpo my home, and am grateful to all those who mentored me along the way.”